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Last week it emerged that the Western Australian government, in an apparent attempt to appease the Chinese Communist Party, had given itself the right to stop people from hiring certain public venues if they identify ‘with countries whose political status is unclear or in dispute’. How effective are Australia’s legal defences against foreign governments’ exertions of influence in this country? In 2018, the Turnbull government legislated the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme Act 2018 (FITS Act). The consequence: those who engage in influence activity (such as lobbying or other pol...

Chinese-Backed Landbridge’s Plans for Six Star Darwin Hotel Scuttled The site is situated on prime waterfront land, adjacent to apartments and the Darwin cruise ship terminal. Landbridge had originally earmarked the site for a $200 million Westin Hotel but had stopped construction 10 months ago and said it was unlikely to continue construction if works did not restart in June 2021. With the deadline passed, the NT government reclaimed the site and will look for new developers instead. “Today is the first-day Landbridge’s option to extend its lease of the Waterfront hotel site expires,�...

The foreign ministry has not made a decision on sending a new ambassador to Belarus once the current representative's term ends. Lithuania has already said that it will not send a new ambassador, in the light of the ongoing human rights violations following last year's reelection of Alexander Lukashenko as president.

May 23, 2021 Share On May 13, Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack stated that the country seeks “patience” in its relationship with mainland China, but also aims to “broaden its trade interests” and “diversify their markets” to include other countries. The comments come after China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), which is part of the State Council, decided on May 6, to “indefinitely stop all operations” under the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue (CASED), which began in June 2014 and included yearly consultations betwe...

Western Australia’s Major Parties Welcome China’s New Consul-General Western Australia’s (WA) Premier Mark McGowan and Opposition Leader, the National Party’s Mia Davies, have both welcomed the new Chinese Consul-General to Perth, saying the state’s relationship with China is vital to the well-being of WA.  Long Dingbin—a strong proponent of Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—was positioned as the head of the Chinese consulate in Western Australia’s capital, Perth, last month following a four-year term as the consul-general in Lahore, Pakistan, during where he ov...