EDITORIAL: Australia must make calm and clear response to China missile

The strategic tension in Australia’s region has gone up significantly.

By test-firing a nuclear-capable missile into the Pacific Ocean on Monday, China has stoked new fears about its growing aggressiveness.

It cannot be mere coincidence that the test came just hours after Australia and Fiji struck an historic military alliance that compels both nations to “act to meet the common danger” if either is attacked.

On Monday the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy conducted a successful firing of a submarine nuclear strategic missile carrying a dummy warhead.

According to a PLA-N statement, the missile landed “precisely in the designated waters”.

It is believed the missile landed close to Tuvalu’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

Earlier in the day Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Fijian counterpart Sitiveni Rabuka signed The Ocean of Peace Alliance which could eventually be expanded to include other Pacific neighbours.

The alliance, also known as the Veitacini Treaty, will mean Fiji joins the US, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea as Australia’s fourth formal treaty partner.

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong, who was in Suva to oversee the signing of the new defence pact, immediately condemned the Chinese action as “destabilising to the region” and “lacking in the transparency and reassurance as to intent”.

Mr Albanese, who on Tuesday had gone on to the Solomon Islands for treaty talks with that nation’s Prime Minister Matthew Wale, said Australia had raised its concerns with China.

“There is no doubt that this is a provocative act by China which does destabilise the region,” Mr Albanese said.

“It is standard procedure for tests such as this, for there to be given 48-hours’ notice — this was not done on this occasion.”

The Federal Government was given only several hours notice of the launch.

Speaking alongside Mr Albanese, Mr Wale said: “China is a good friend of Solomon Islands, but this is not something a friend does”.

“Be our friend, but don’t threaten us, it is not good in our region,” he said.

But a Chinese mouthpiece, The Global Times, was defiant, saying in an editorial that “China’s actions were reasonable and lawful”.

Targeting Australia and New Zealand as “discordant voices”, it said that “as for those voices with ulterior motives, or even those with guilty consciences, whether they are nervous or afraid, this is a situation that they will have to accept and get used to sooner or later”.

The test-firing was clearly meant to send another intimidatory message to Australia and the Pacific nations.

Let’s not forget it followed China’s menacing behaviour when a naval task-force conducted live-fire exercises while it circumnavigated Australia last year.

And yet the latest missile test could actually work against China’s interests in the region.

By demonstrating though its actions how vulnerable Pacific nations are to any attempt by Beijing to bully them, China may have merely made them even more disposed to forge closer relations with Australia.

For our part, Australia needs to remain calm and clear-headed, and act in accordance with our national interests so there is no room for any misunderstanding about our position.

Responsibility for the editorial comment is taken by Editor-in-Chief Christopher Dore