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If you reckon Albo was quick out of the blocks to establish himself on the world stage just hours after being sworn in as PM, think again.
Gough Whitlam didn't even wait for the starter's pistol when, as Opposition Leader, he jetted off to China in 1971 with a Labor delegation in tow. The trip raised Cold War eyebrows. At the time Australia did not have diplomatic relations with China. Billy McMahon was PM and it was seen in conservative circles as an act of supreme arrogance. Whitlam's trip also provoked irritation in the US, trumping President Richard Nixon's announcement he would visit China in coming months.
Whitlam established diplomatic relations with China in 1972. He returned there as PM in 1973, laying the foundations for Australia's most important trade relationship.
Anthony Albanese's attendance at the Quad meeting in Tokyo alongside Foreign Minister Penny Wong, her trip to Fiji in the same week, and the PM's upcoming visit to Indonesia demonstrate Australia is back and the she'll-be-right stasis of the former government is over.
The fresh approach appears to be paying dividends. After congratulating Albanese on his election victory, China is now talking up the anniversary of Whitlam's diplomatic recognition as an opportunity to reset the relationship between the two countries. Its Pacific push appears to have stalled as well, possibly thanks in part to Penny Wong's reiteration of the new government's commitment to serious action on climate change when she spoke with Pacific leaders.
Positive overtures from Beijing have followed two years of deep freeze, involving sanctions which have cost agricultural exporters billions and a stream of ugly rhetoric. We're a long, long way from a thaw and the onus rests with China to open the freezer door.
This is where the Penny drops.
Wong is intelligent, articulate, personable and energetic. And, as her appearances in Senate Estimates have shown, she can be formidable. These qualities make for a potentially powerful foreign minister, someone who can strengthen existing friendships and forge new ones. Someone who can stare down foe. Someone who, heaven forbid, won't make tasteless jokes about water lapping at Pacific nations for all the world to hear. Someone who, hopefully, can help convince China to be more reasonable in its dealings with Australia and its near neighbours.
Of course, all this comes with a caveat for Anthony Albanese. He can't be seen to be prancing on the world stage when there is so much to do at home. Whitlam copped a shellacking for spending too much time overseas. Kevin 07 became Kevin 747 in record time. Nothing is quite as toxic to voters as a prime minister who travels too much on the taxpayer tab.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Can our differences with China ever be resolved? How do you rate Penny Wong as Foreign Minister? What are the biggest challenges she faces? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- Economic growth exceeded expectations in the March quarter. The economy grew by 0.8 per cent, taking the annual growth rate to 3.3 per cent. However, Treasurer Jim Chalmers warned the GDP figures were backward-looking and did not take into account the worsening outlook in inflation and rising energy costs.
- The Albanese cabinet was sworn in with a record number of women taking positions in the ministry. There were also some surprises, with Jason Clare named Education Minister, Tanya Plibersek given the Environment and Water portfolio, and Veterans Affairs under Matt Keogh moved to the outer ministry.
- Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff has indicated he supports changing the date for Australia Day from January 26.
THEY SAID IT: ""In politics...never retreat, never retract...never admit a mistake." - Napoleon Bonaparte.
YOU SAID IT: "Question Time at present is all about rampaging bulls and screaming, self-important women. It is time to restore decency and consideration for the economic stability and integrity of Australia. Preferential voting must be removed at federal level and an overhaul of the ridiculous agendas of the minor groups addressed." - Billie
"While I do believe that we need some decorum in Parliament, we also need to allow the politicians to express their passionate views on the topics being addressed. Too much rhetoric is on 'political correctness'. We need to take the middle ground on this issue. Keating might have gone too far, but one must look on the positive results. He didn't play politics but actually took on the tasks of managing our country and brought in some great changes that was necessary. He was a great leader and got the job done." - Michele
"Proper debate means being heard, and having a chance to change the opposition's mind, not just shouting them down. When a pollie does a 'backflip' on any issue, it's not a bad thing, as the press like to make out. It means someone was able to change another's mind with a better idea or a satisfactory 'compromise'. That word 'compromise' seems to be unknown in political circles. I look forward to seeing it make a comeback under Albanese and his cabinet. I'm saddened to be hearing the losers only talking about how they're going to get re-elected in three years' time, instead of how to be an effective opposition." - Joan
"Of course behaviour in parliament is off-putting, also puerile, childish, immature and undignified, to mention a few. I'd like to see, as Albo seems to want, MPs treating us, the house and each other with dignity and respect. But, I've read elsewhere that theatre has always been part of the behaviour. I suspect it's going to be a hard ask." - Ces
"Indeed. We are all over the snide remarks from all sides of politics. We hunger for rational debate with substance so that it can result in real solution and not muddy the waters and make it impossible to solve any problem. It's no wonder progress is slow or not at all. It has become a truism that politics inhibits progress." - Rosemary
"The two party political system in Australia is adversarial by nature. It's like two football teams (Union or League, not soccer or AFL) who are always striving to get across the advantage line. In parliament that has previously meant by any means possible. The election result hints of more of the same, however I hope Albanese succeeds in trying to change that - time will tell. A better quality of politicians would lead to a better quality parliament. The "independents" were a ray of hope, but I fear that they, along with other crossbenchers, may be stifled in some areas - time will tell on that also. Question Time needs to be just that, questions being put to the government, not just a series of Dorothy Dixers, which do nothing but take up valuable time. Oh, and Keating was just an embarrassment and a nasty piece of work. No wonder he didn't get a mention." - Bob
"The new PM may improve parliamentary behavior for a while, but having to deal with the Greens to get anything through the Senate will sorely test his patience. But as a quiet Australian I wish him well, and thank heavens he can sideline the wealthy, entitled Holmes a Court group." - Phil
"Way back in the mid-60s, an English friend commented that Parliament was being broadcast on ABC Radio and he heard some of it on his way from the airport to the city in the taxi. 'Is this the Australian version of the Goon Show?' he asked the driver. Parliament is one of the few places where there is freedom of speech, i.e. speech without consequences. It would be nice to think our politicians are responsible enough to treat this freedom, and other parliamentarians, with respect." - Sue
"I appreciate the perspective of The Echidna. Thank you. My thought for the day: I'm sick of hearing sociopathic myopics moaning that Australia only contributes a small percentage to global warming. As a first world country, with some of the best living standards on the planet, and having benefited from selling and burning fossil fuels for more than 200 years, Australia has an absolute moral obligation to lead by example with action on climate change." - Phil