Hong Kong, 22 April 1971
560. Confidential
China’s Australia Policy
The events of this month suggest that Chinese policy makers could be on the point of assuming a more active and opportunistic policy towards Australia.
2. In recent years Chinese propaganda media have had very little to say about Australia and this is still the case at present. Their coverage typically consists of brief reports of strikes and demonstrations every week or two which are slanted against the Australian authorities but not in particularly harsh terms. Many of these items are picked out of ‘Vanguard’, the newspaper of Hill’s Maoist communist party. 1 It is reasonable to assume from this sort of coverage that Chinese interest in Australia has not been high and a good deal less than their interest in all of the countries lying between us and China. The coverage also indicates that the Chinese have been depending largely on Hill for their view of Australia and the indications are that they have held a stereotype Maoist view of a country heavily under the influence of the United States, exploited by United States monopoly capitalism etc. etc. This dependence on Hill is underlined by the Four Comers affair referred to by the Prime Minister in the House on 20th April. 2
3. While we do not interpret the Chinese decision not to purchase Australian wheat or the invitations to the ping pong team as part of a subtle diplomatic offensive against Australia, we think the reactions in Australia to these developments may lead the Chinese to reconsider the policy they have been following up to now.
4. The primary motivation of the wheat decision appears to have been the fact that after a run of good crops the Chinese have built up reserves to the point where they now need less wheat. While there may have been some Chinese interest in the repercussions in Australia this was probably secondary to the wider interest in indicating to the international community that the establishment of diplomatic relations with China may bring commercial benefits.
5. As indicated in our telegram 5473 the primary purpose of the Chinese ping pong offensive seems to have been to produce a favourable international reaction with a view to improving the atmosphere in New York when the Chinese representation issue comes up. This being so the Chinese have the problem of keeping up the momentum over the next six months. The Australian team is one of six to be invited into China this month, the third (after those from the United States and Colombia) from countries with which she does not have diplomatic relations. We doubt whether the invitation to the Australian team should be seen as primarily a bilateral gesture on the part of the Chinese. We would expect over the next six months a number of similar public relations exercises involving numerous countries. Francis James4 may even be the beneficiary of one of them.
6. While the fallout in Australia of these two developments may have been partly incidental we would expect the Chinese to take note of the fact that China has become a public issue there and to consider how they might best exploit this.
Just as they appear to be about to try out on the United States the sort of people-to- people policy which they have been employing in regard to Japan, so they may do likewise with Australia. Their reaction to the ALP request for admission of a representative could give an indication of the line they will take. The Chinese may assess that there would be advantages for them in contacts with the ALP, though a move in this direction seems bound to place some strain on their relations with Hill’s group. Hill could be expected to resist a move which would derogate from his present role.5
7. Should the Chinese decide to implement a more active and opportunistic policy towards Australia their aim would be to bring maximum pressure on the Government to move away from its present close association with the United States, in particular to move from its present position on Chinese representation in the United Nations and to sever its links with Taiwan.
[NAA: A1838, 3107/38/18, viii]
1 Edward Hill, Chairman of the Communist Party of Australia (Marxist–Leninist).
2 On 20 April, McMahon referred to a request by the Australian Broadcasting Commission to permit the journalist John Penlington to travel to the PRC for the purpose of producing a ‘Four Comers’ film relating to that country. The ABC, he continued, was subsequently contacted by Hillwho said that he had been asked by the Chinese to handle the matter, and that no other avenues were open to the ABC. See Commonwealth Parliamentary Debates, vol. 72, 1971, pp. 1664–5.
3 Not published.
4 See footnote 6, Document 137.
5 Robertson noted in handwriting: ‘Re para 6. Given the PRC’s willingness on numerous occasions to jettison the interests of their indigenous friends, I personally would place no reliance whatever on Ted Hill’s views as constituting a brake on Peking’s operations’.