China and Covid-19 on minds as Australian, New Zealand leaders meet

Name: Trade ‘only one part of the battle‘ in China-Australia dispute, says legal expert Bryan Mercurio
Uploaded: 2021-05-29T22:00:09.000Z
Duration: 9 min 20 s
Description: Trade ‘only one part of the battle‘ in China-Australia dispute, says legal expert Bryan Mercurio

Meeting between Scott Morrison and Jacinda Ardern will be an opportunity to dispel perceptions of a growing gap between the countries’ China policies, experts say

Differences were highlighted recently when Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said New Zealand was uncomfortable about using the ‘Five Eyes’ alliance as a platform to criticise Beijing

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New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison at Admiralty House in Sydney, Australia, in February 2020. The pair are to meet again on Sunday. Photo: EPA

John Power

Published: 6:00am, 30 May 2021Updated: 9:07pm, 30 May 2021

The prime ministers of Australia and New Zealand will meet face-to-face for the first time in 15 months on Sunday, amid signs of division between the neighbours on how to manage relations with China.

Scott Morrison and Jacinda Ardern will meet in Queenstown for discussions that are expected to touch on their differing approaches to China as Western countries including the United States ramp up coordination to pressure Beijing on human rights and security concerns.

Ardern said earlier this month the meeting would be an opportunity for the historic friends and allies to discuss “shared challenges”, including their recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and “key regional and security issues”.

The two leaders last met in person in late February last year, before the pandemic forced the countries’ borders shut. The neighbours count each other among their closest partners, with two-way trade topping A$27 billion (US$21 billion) in 2019-2020, and more than 600,000 Kiwis calling Australia home.

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Trade ‘only one part of the battle‘ in China-Australia dispute, says legal expert Bryan Mercurio

Robert Ayson, a professor of strategic studies at Victoria University of Wellington, said that while he expected China to be a major topic of discussion, the two leaders were likely to play down any differences in public.