Australia signed a peace treaty with its Southeast Asian neighbors yesterday and rejected what it called puerile comments about it being the US' deputy sheriff in the region.
"I think even you could move beyond the puerile allegations of deputy sheriff," Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer snapped at a reporter when asked about the role often ascribed to Australia as a proxy for Washington in the region.
Downer was speaking at a news conference in the Malaysian capital moments before he signed the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, which calls for signatories not to interfere in each other's internal affairs.
The treaty was born within the 10-member ASEAN, which made signing the pact a condition for entry into next week's inaugural East Asian summit.
Australia hesitated to sign the treaty, saying it might conflict with its existing security arrangements with the US, but reconsidered when it became clear that Canberra would not be invited to the summit without its signature.
"Being part of the East Asia summit, that's a quid pro quo we are happy to live with," Downer said, adding that Australia had received guarantees from ASEAN that its signature on the treaty would not disturb its existing treaty arrangements.
Australia's entry into the East Asia summit, along with ASEAN states and Japan, China, South Korea, India and New Zealand, follows the 2003 retirement of former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, who opposed its membership in Asian forum.
Mahathir routinely calls Australia the deputy sheriff of Washington in Asia. Last Wednesday he said that he felt the inclusion of Australia and New Zealand had subverted the development of a genuinely Asian forum.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's administration, however, has struck a much more welcoming tone.
"I think the fact that they have subscribed to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation shows that geopolitically and geoeconomically they want to be part of this region and to participate and contribute. We welcome this," Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told reporters yesterday.
Russia also moved closer to getting full membership in the East Asia Summit yesterday by signing an economic cooperation accord.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hailed the pact as progress in creating substantive relations with the ASEAN.
Russia was refused full membership at next week's inaugural East Asia Summit because ASEAN was split over its application.
Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (
"China, a developing country, will keep to its peaceful influence. China is insisting on a path of peaceful development," he said.
"We will not be threatening or replacing anyone," he told reporters. "We'll help as much as possible to establish a harmonious world. In that way, everyone is happy."
Li dismissed fears that China was harboring ambitions to be dominant in the region, replacing the influence of the US and Japan.
"We have lots of issues at home. We are focusing... on improving the living of the 1.3 billion Chinese people," Li said.
"We want to see peace across the world so we can focus our energy on developing our economy," he said.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
GEOPOLITICAL CONCERNS: Foreign companies such as Nissan, Volkswagen and Konica Minolta have pulled back their operations in China this year Foreign companies pulled more money from China last quarter, a sign that some investors are still pessimistic even as Beijing rolls out stimulus measures aimed at stabilizing growth. China’s direct investment liabilities in its balance of payments dropped US$8.1 billion in the third quarter, data released by the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed on Friday. The gauge, which measures foreign direct investment (FDI) in China, was down almost US$13 billion for the first nine months of the year. Foreign investment into China has slumped in the past three years after hitting a record in 2021, a casualty of geopolitical tensions,
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