Economics, Security, and Australia’s China Debate
How to describe Australia’s relationship with China is something that has vexed many of Australia’s political leaders. From Kevin Rudd’s offer that Australia might serve as China’s “zhengyou” (honest friend), to Tony Abbott’s description of the relationship as defined by “fear and greed,” to Malcolm Turnbull’s quip that China represented a “frenemy” of Australia, the labels used by these three prime ministers symbolise the difficulty we have faced in recent years in Australia in thinking about how to frame our multifaceted relationship with China.