Navy may wave flag minus US

Our ships could go it alone in freedom of navigation exercise in the South China Sea

THE Australian Navy may be preparing for a direct independent venture into the South China Sea. Australia has traditionally avoided direct participation in freedom of navigation exercises so as not to affect diplomatic relations with China, our largest trading partner. Last week, however, after US President Donald Trump said the US needed to step up its efforts against Beijing and “would love to have Australia involved” in joint freedom of navigation exercises, Malcolm Turnbull refused to rule it out directly, risking a hostile reaction from Beijing. “Australia, as you know, defends the right of freedom of navigation and overflight throughout the world but we do not want to speculate on operational matters,” the Prime Minister said in the US. Over the weekend, The Australian reported the Turnbull Government was considering an independent Australian freedom of navigation exercise in the South China Sea. While conducting these operations with the US would run a major risk of angering Beijing, the Defence Department in Canberra has reportedly drawn up plans to do so in case the political position changes. The Australian Defence Force has conducted a number

of operations in the region without crossing within 12 nautical miles.

While this is not an antagonistic move, a US defence official has told Fairfax Media that China turning its artificial islands on the South China Sea into bases reinforces its claims to the entire area – including beyond the 12 nautical mile limit.

Joint operations between Australia and the US would come at a time when, according to Fairfax, China and the US could be facing their most serious confrontation yet.

Over the past month, the Australian Government has presented a mixed response to the question of China posing a military threat.

On one hand, Defence Minister Marise Payne said last month that Australia shared similar concerns to the US.

She appeared to reference China while accusing certain nations of seeking to undermine the international order “through use of proxies, covert and paramilitary operations, economic coercion, cyber attacks and misinformation and media manipulation’’.

But Foreign Minister Julie Bishop presented a different view.

“We do not see Russia or

China as posing a military threat to Australia,” she told Sky News. “We continue to work closely with China. We undertake military exercises with China as well as other countries in the region and will continue to do so.”

Ms Payne later gave a media conference backtracking on her statement, saying: “I want to be very clear that Australia doesn’t see threat in the region and we certainly don’t see China as a threat.”

Dr Adam Lockyer, a senior lecturer in Security Studies at Macquarie University, told news.com.au that maintaining our economic interests with China and our security interests with the US remained a tricky balance but if push came to shove, we’d side with the latter.

“If China and the US ever got into a direct confrontation, there’s little doubt we would be on the US side,” he said.

“That’s inevitable. It’s just a question of how involved we get, and how committed we are to US policy.”

The meeting between Mr Turnbull and Mr Trump appeared to reinforce the alliance.

Mr Turnbull said at the White House: “It’s 100 years of mateship that we’re celebrating ... we have been fighting side by side in freedom’s cause ever since – 100 years of mateship and 100 more to come.”