As tensions rise in the Taiwan Strait, Australia’s former defense minister Christopher Pyne has said that the Chinese Communist Party’s growing military threat to Taiwan could trigger a regional war in the Indo-Pacific region and that the Australian government must be vigilant and not take it lightly.
On May 10, Pyne published an opinion piece in The Advertiser titled “Be alert, not alarmed over China tension”.
He said that most of those involved in shaping Australia’s defense and foreign policy over the past decade are well aware of the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to become a superpower, and have come to grips with the changing landscape of U.S.-China competition in the Indo-Pacific region.
He believes that the situation in the Indo-Pacific region will not ease anytime soon, and that Australia needs to be vigilant and not take it lightly.
The 53-year-old Pyne, who will serve as Australia’s defense minister from August 2018 to May 2019, also warned in a speech at the University of Adelaide in April that Asia is now “more likely” to go to war, and that Taiwan “Taiwan is “most likely to be the next flashpoint.
Australia’s current defense minister, Peter Dutton, also recently stressed that the Chinese Communist Party’s desire to “reunify Taiwan” has become increasingly apparent in recent years, warning that outsiders should not underestimate the possibility of conflict between Australia and the Chinese Communist Party over the Taiwan issue.
In a televised interview on April 25, Dutton pointed out that the Chinese Communist Party has been “militarizing” different positions in the Asia-Pacific region in recent years, and that with the withdrawal of Australian soldiers from Afghanistan, the Australian military must put its focus back on its own region.
Michael Pezzullo, secretary general of the Australian Department of Home Affairs, described the “drums of war” as having been sounded, calling on Australia and its allies to be ready to fight for freedom.
Pyne echoed those sentiments, saying they were “appropriate.
Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott also raised the issue of Taiwan at a seminar in Auckland last week, saying the world needs to face up to the threat to democracy posed by the Chinese Communist Party.
In a May 6 interview with Melbourne’s 3AW radio station, current Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said, “We [Australia] have always honored our agreement to support the United States and our allies in the Indo-Pacific region.”
He said Australia is well aware of the uncertainty in the Indo-Pacific region, and that Australia will “always defend freedom in the region.
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