Australia chastised over Japan snub
Updated
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is winding up the U-S leg of his first big international trip since coming to power.
And while he may be making an impression in Washington, Kevin Rudd is under fire for failing to make Japan part of his itinerary.
Presenter: Graeme Dobell
Speaker: Professor of International Politics at the University of Tokyo, Kiichi Fujiwara.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is winding up the U-S leg of his first big international trip since coming to power.
And while he may be making an impression in Washington, Kevin Rudd is under fire for failing to make Japan part of his itinerary.
Presenter: Graeme Dobell
Speaker: Professor of International Politics at the University of Tokyo, Kiichi Fujiwara.
Australia, Japan, China
FUJIWARA: Only a minority, but that minority could be very noisy. There are people in Japan who are afraid that any new government in the region, whether Australia or Korea or Taiwan could pay more attention to their relationship to mainland China and not Japan. And bypassing Japan is a major concern for them. Now the number of these people would be limited but there would be a significant number of conservative members of parliament who would be very suspicious about Australia's new government in being pro-China and anti-Japanese.
DOBELL: Could that suspicion affect the way that Japan deals with Australia's new Prime Minister who is a Mandarin speaking former diplomat?
FUJIWARA: I don't think so at all, as a matter of fact having a Prime Minister in Australia who is fluent in Chinese and who has good contacts with mainland China is actually a political asset for Japan as well. Bringing China to our orbit, to our institution is the most important issue for the Fukuda administration and for that matter the Japanese government, and I think we share the same concern with Australia. So a strong connection to China is not a source, should not be a source of suspicion or anxiety at all.
DOBELL: Is Prime Minister Rudd though getting the symbolism wrong, the hierarchy wrong going first to China before he goes to Japan and admitting that he has not yet had a telephone conversation with the Prime Minister of Japan?
FUJIWARA: Well I wouldn't think so, some people might say so, but I wouldn't thing so because Prime Minister Rudd's strength is his ties to China, and whenever we are working on multilateral institutions and strengthening institutions, bringing China into our orbit is important. And Australia's new Prime Minister, Prime Minister Rudd is critical for that. So his foreign policy role would be to bring China to our side and I think he did the right thing.
DOBELL: Is it possible for Australia, Japan with the United States to operate creatively to bring China into the regional orbit, or is that always going to raise Beijing's suspicions about containment policies?
FUJIWARA: Well Beijing's suspicion of containment policy has been somehow heightened by our previous leaders. Prime Minister Abe and for that matter Prime Minister Koizumi worked along with India and Australia, and there's nothing wrong about that, but they actually aroused suspicion of containment on the Chinese side. And this only led to further military development in mainland China, which is not to our benefit.
DOBELL: Is that really the division we're talking about, that the previous Australian prime minister also said we don't believe in the containment of China, but there were suspicions that he might sign up to the policy. Is that the difference that this new Australian Prime Minister when he says Australia will never be involved in containment, perhaps Mr Rudd actually means it?
FUJIWARA: I think he means it, I think he means it and for that matter I think our Prime Minister right now, Prime Minister Fukuda is also not interested in containing China either. And with a new administration in the United States I think there'll be a change in American policy as well, engagement will really mean engagement and not a concealed containment.
DOBELL: So is it possible to say that there are diplomatic strains between Tokyo and Canberra as the new government beds down in Australia?
FUJIWARA: I doubt it, I don't think so. I don't think so and so long as Australia keeps on providing the most important natural resources, you are our friend.
