Time to strengthen relations with Australia

Na Kyung-won

The author is a former floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, now the governing People Power Party.

I had visited Australia through a special visits program offered by Canberra. The latest visit strengthened the idea that Australia is a country that should be brought closer with Korea in terms of mutual national interests.

Australia is a liberal democracy and a key country in the Asia-Pacific region that shares values with Korea. Australia is member of Aukus — a trilateral diplomatic and security consultative body among the U.S., the UK, and Australia — and its Indo-Pacific strategy is not very different from that of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration. Therefore, Australia can become a good partner of Korea for defense and security. Australia is also a crucial partner on economic security, such as building stable supply chains, since the country has abundant key mineral resources, including lithium and iron ore.

It is also a very important country in terms of carbon neutrality to respond to climate changes, such as producing green hydrogen using abundant renewable energy. As a key partner of Korea, mutual cooperation with Australia has been strengthened, and this development is significant as the two countries complement each other.

Australia’s per capita income is $56,000, 1.7 times that of Korea. Australia, which used to be focused on the primary and tertiary industries, is rapidly shifting its focus into the secondary industry. Unlike the past, when unprocessed minerals were exported, it is striving to attract investment by emphasizing joint explorations and technological cooperation. In particular, Roger Cook, premier of Western Australia, which is rich in key mineral resources, showed great interest in attracting investment from Korean companies. He was also interested in cooperation in the defense industry. However, as the emphasis is on expanding interoperability rather than a simple export-import relationship, a diplomatic approach is required, whether it is in the defense industry or in natural resources.

The relationship between Australia and China needs to be observed with caution. Australia, which used to be highly dependent on China, has somewhat lowered China’s significance during the last conservative administration for the sake of its alliance strategy with the U.S. However, as a prominent minister of the Labor Party, which currently is in power, has said, the perception is widely spread that the last conservative government had used anti-China sentiment too politically and it is possible that Australia’s trade dependence on China may increase again.

According to a survey by the Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank, Australians trust Japan the most with 85 percent, while Russia (8 percent) and China (15 percent) have lower trust. Australians ranked Japan as Australia’s best friend in Asia with 44 percent, but Korea only scored 4 percent. This is lower than China’s seven percent. Some Australian lawmakers said they enjoyed watching “The Glory,” a Korean show aired on Netflix, and mentioned K-pop such as a girl group Blackpink, but this poll showed that Korea has many challenges.

The most impressive was Canberra’s policy of tolerance and reconciliation with the natives. The Australian and Aboriginal flags were hoisted side by side on the Sydney Harbor Bridge and in front of Parliament in the capital city. The respect for the Aboriginal people can be felt in the words, “This land is the land of the First Nation...,” which appeared repeatedly in meetings and commentaries of cultural docents.

Despite its short history, Australia is fulfilling its responsibility as a leading country to protect freedom in the international community. Since World War I, it dispatched troops to all wars to defend freedom. At the War Memorial in the opposite side of the Parliament building, the names of the countries it had dispatched troops to and the name of the fallen soldiers are engraved.

Australia dispatched 17,000 out of its 50,000 troops to the Korean War, and in April 1951, it won the Battle of Gapyeong and defended Seoul. Even now, it does not hesitate to provide drones and other supports to Ukraine.

Realizing the keywords of freedom, solidarity, sacrifice and dedication, I became convinced that strong solidarity with Australia would greatly contribute to our national interest. Strengthening solidarity with Australia will further enhance Korea’s international prestige and diplomatic power.

Translation by the Korea JoongAng Daily staff.