প্রকাশ: 07/03/2022
China must act on its declarations of promoting world peace and join the
effort to stop Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Australia's prime minister said on
Monday, warning that the world was in danger of being reshaped by an "arc
of autocracy".
Scott
Morrison also suggested in a wide-ranging speech that Russia's invasion was not
going according to the plan of its leader, Vladimir Putin, who he said had
"overestimated the capacity of how he might be able to prosecute this
illegal war".
"China
has long claimed to have a role as one of the major powers in the world and to
be a contributor to global peace and stability. No country will have a bigger
impact on concluding this terrible war in Ukraine than China," Morrison
said in response to a question after a speech at the Lowy Institute think tank.
Morrison,
whose government has clashed with its biggest export partner over a range of
issues, said he was dismayed by China's reticence.
"I
was listening for the voice of the Chinese government when it came to
condemning the actions of Russia and there was a chilling silence," he
said.
China has
declined to call the Russian attack on Ukraine an "invasion" while
asking Western countries to respect Russia's "legitimate security
concerns". It has called for a solution to the crisis through
negotiations.
Russia
calls the campaign it launched on Feb. 24 a "special military
operation", saying it has no plans to occupy Ukraine.
Morrison
called it a "gross violation of international law" and "the
latest example of an authoritarian regime seeking to challenge the status quo
through threats and violence".
Most
countries had cut off trade with Russia and payment companies like Visa and
Mastercard were suspending operations there.
But China
had relaxed wheat tariffs to Russia and may supply its UnionPay system,
Morrison said.
"This
for me just jars completely with what the broader international interest
is," he said. "So long as they have a bet each way on this, then I
fear the bloodshed will continue."
Morrison,
whose comments represent a sharpening of Australia's criticism of China, also
suggested its silence revealed a natural affinity with Russia that had
far-reaching implications.
"A
new arc of autocracy is instinctively aligning to challenge and reset the world
order in their own image," he said.
Morrison
questioned whether the invasion was going to Putin's plan, as Putin has said it
was.
"There
is no doubt that Mr Putin is not getting what he was seeking," Morrison
said.
"I
think he's overestimated the capacity of how he might be able to prosecute this
illegal war. The way that he has just sent young conscripts into flames, I
don't see how that would be resonating well back in Russia."
Morrison
predicted a "resistance in the Ukraine which will only grow over time. I
think any gains that are potentially made will be very hard to hold".
Morrison,
whose conservative coalition faces an election by May that most polls suggest
it will lose, formed a new alliance with the United States and Britain last
year that was centred around nuclear-powered submarines for Australia.
On Monday,
he said the submarine bases would be built on the east coast, home to most of
the population.
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