Wong confronts Chinese counterpart over ballistic missile test in Pacific | ABC NEWS

[00:00:00]The Foreign Minister has pressed her Chinese counterpart over Beijing's recent ballistic missile test in the Pacific. It was during a meeting in the Philippines. Penny Wong has also raised concerns about jailed Australian writer Dr. Yang Jun and China's conduct in the South China Sea.

[00:00:17]Foreign Affairs reporter Stephen Dziedzic joins us now from Canberra.

[00:00:20]Stephen, what was the Foreign Minister's message to Wang Yi over the missile test?

[00:00:25]>> Well, Gemma, I think the main message was that this was not seen as a friendly act in the region. Now, one of the things that Australia has been pointing to is the fact that a large number of Pacific nations in particular have made it clear that they were unhappy with this ballistic missile test. Now, for the viewers who don't remember the details, this was the missile that was launched from a nuclear-powered submarine about 2 weeks ago by China. It flew some 8,000 km over a number of countries including the Philippines, but also over a number of countries in the Pacific before plunging into the ocean somewhere near the exclusive economic zone of Tuvalu.

[00:01:02]Now, we know that the Foreign Minister took the opportunity during this meeting to press Wang Yi on this missile test and also pointed to the fact that a fair number of Pacific nations have also raised concerns. I think that's something that Australia is still working on a little bit in the background as well as raising a whole host of other issues. Now, we don't know exactly what they are, but we know for one that she did raise the case of Dr. Yang Hengjun, the Australian writer who's facing a lengthy jail period in in China as well as concerns that Australia has about China's conduct more broadly in the region. That includes in the South Pacific, but also in the South China Sea where there have been a series of confrontations between China and the Philippines, something that Australia blames very firmly on Beijing. So, lots of common ground broadly in the economic space, but also plenty of profound differences for both Foreign Ministers to talk over.

[00:01:55]And Stephen, what's been the the response in the Pacific to this test over the last fortnight?

[00:02:01]>> Yeah, it's been fascinating to track, Gemma. Initially, there was a very strong response from the Pacific. We saw maybe 10 or so Pacific nations issue statements on the on the on the missile launch. And a number of them, not all, but a number were very, very critical. We saw Vanuatu, a country that has a very close relationship with China, saying it was very unhappy with the test. PNG, Palau, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare was perhaps the fiercest critic, saying it wasn't the act of a friend. So, a number of Pacific nations spoke up pretty strongly on this. It was a sharper response than the one we saw back in 2024 when China last conducted an ICBM test. That said, we haven't yet had a statement from the Pacific Islands Forum. That's the premier regional body.

[00:02:47]The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said a couple of years ago they were working on a draft statement that he said would be very strong, but it has not yet seen the light of day. It seems to have hit the rocks. ABC has been told that's because they could not reach consensus.

[00:03:01]And a number of Pacific nations, or two specifically, Nauru and Kiribati, have been standing in the way of it being issued. Now, they're two countries that have a pretty good relationship with China at the moment. So, even though we did see a stronger response in the Pacific, we haven't yet had that all-important regional statement with the endorsement of the Pacific Islands Forum. We'll have to wait and see what's said when leaders gather about a month from now in Palau for their annual meeting.