Fewer Australians see China as a threat as negative public opinion may have ‘bottomed out’: survey
- The poll reveals strong public support for the Aukus agreement but Australians are now less clear about how the deal would impact regional security
- Friendlier diplomacy by PM Anthony Albanese’s government has cooled tensions, ended some informal blocks on trade and increased contacts
While feelings towards China remained lukewarm, fewer Australians surveyed – 52 per cent of the 2,077 Australians polled in March – saw China as a threat. This was an 11-point reduction from last year’s 63 per cent.
More Australians also saw China as an economic partner this year at 44 per cent, compared with 33 per cent last year.
But friendlier diplomacy by the government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has cooled tensions, ending some of the informal blocks on trade imposed by China and increasing ministerial contact between the two nations.
“There are signs in this survey that negative public opinion towards China may have bottomed out,” said Ryan Neelam, director of the Lowy Institute’s public opinion and foreign policy programme.
“But much depends on what happens next. The ball is in Beijing’s court after a campaign of economic coercion and diplomatic pressure that ultimately damaged China’s own image in Australia.”
‘A past mindset’: Aukus upends Australia’s attempted US-China balancing act
Despite the improvement in sentiments over the year, the same proportion of Australians surveyed – three-quarters – still felt that China would be a potential military threat to Australia in the next 20 years.
The pact is widely viewed as a counter to China’s ambitions in the region.
About 31 per cent surveyed were against buying nuclear-powered submarines as opposed to 28 per cent last year.
The Lowy Institute said while the poll revealed strong public support for the submarine agreement, Australians were now less clear about how the deal would affect regional security or whether it was good value for money.
There has also been rising internal discontent within the ruling Labor party over the Aukus deal in recent weeks.
The poll showed a majority of Australians continued to see the alliance between Australia and the US as important, although that ratio fell five points to 82 per cent from a record high of 87 per cent last year.
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This year, fewer Australians surveyed – 57 per cent – said they were in favour of allowing the US to base military forces in Australia. Last year, 63 per cent were in support.