Australian lawmakers’ Taiwan visits could cool warming ties with Beijing

A delegation of Australian politicians this week travelled to Taipei and met President Tsai Ing-wen

Former PM Scott Morrison said he plans to undertake a similar trip next month after the Chinese envoy said the move ‘sent a wrong signal to Taiwan independence forces’

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Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen greets visiting Australian lawmakers in Taipei on September 26. Photo: Taiwan Presidential Office via AP

Published: 1:49pm, 29 Sep 2023

Diplomatic tensions between Beijing and Canberra threaten to flare anew over a stream of Australian lawmakers visiting Taiwan, including former prime minister Scott Morrison who triggered a breakdown in relations with China in 2020.

A delegation of Australian parliamentarians this week travelled to Taipei, where they met with President Tsai Ing-wen. Morrison told the Australian newspaper that he is intending to visit next month.

The news provoked a strong reaction from China, with ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian saying visits to Taiwan by Australian politicians sent the wrong message.

“Australian members of parliament or the former prime minister are both political figures,” Xiao told journalists at an event honouring the 74th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. “Visiting Taiwan carries an obvious political meaning, and is a wrong signal sent to Taiwan independence forces.”

Beijing views the island as a renegade province that should be reintegrated into mainland control, by force if necessary. While many nations, including the US, do not officially acknowledge Taiwan as an independent state, they oppose any use of force to alter the existing status quo.