Posted September 25, 2019 17:58:34

Australia is naive to think the United States will save it in the event of war, a leading pro-Beijing academic has warned, after Prime Minister Scott Morrison appeared to shift Australia's position on trade to be more in line with US policy.

Professor Wang Yiwei, a Renmin University professor of international relations, is one of three top scholars deployed by Beijing for a speaking tour in Australia.

But he brought a grim warning for the country, saying that while it was unlikely that current trade tensions would escalate into a cold war, Australia should not rely on its allies to bail it out.

"Maybe the US will betray you, and not necessarily protect you," he said.

"The US has so many allies. If they think they cannot win … [it's] easy to sacrifice you.

"You always show your loyalty to the US, but the US [has] global considerations. In history they have sacrificed many alliances."

The visit by Professor Wang and his colleagues coincides with Mr Morrison's visit to America, where he made a speech calling for China to face tougher trade conditions.

"Australia's job is to not make trouble between each other or take sides, but to be very sensitive about this issue," Professor Wang said.

Professor Wang, a former Communist Party Member, said he wanted Australia to be aware of the risks.

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"Many American politicians said clearly, openly or secretly Australia will be the frontier of China-US rivalry," he said.

"If there is a war, whether a hot war or cold war, you are the first sacrifice for this war."

He argued Australia was not directly impacted by the last cold war, and so does not understand the gravity of such a conflict.

Professor Wang said China viewed Australia as its hope of avoiding another conflict, suggesting it was in Australia's national interest to help negotiate an outcome and de-escalate the trade war.

"We want a good relationship with everyone. Australia should be the bridge, to bridge the gap between China and the United States," he said.

China's economy 'still developing'

Professor Wang also took aim at Mr Morrison's claim that China is a "newly developed country", while in the United States.

Why is the world's second-largest economy and home to the largest number of billionaires still called a "developing" country?

The Prime Minister called on the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to update China's status from developing to developed, which would require Beijing to abide by tougher trade obligations.

He said China's status was determined by the WTO, the US and its allies.

"China is a developing country, but the West says it's a superpower. I say combine them together — super developing country," he said.

"It's not a normal developing country, yes … and we have special responsibilities on carbon dioxide emissions … but our per capita GDP shows we are a developing country."

Academic labels Uyghur video 'fake news'

Professor Wang, who is an expert in Chinese foreign policy, said the country's citizens were deeply offended by Australia for a number of reasons, especially criticism of China's human rights record.

He accused Australia of "pioneering" recent condemnation by the UN of China's treatment of the Uyghur minority, damaging relations.

He claimed a video which surfaced online showing hundreds of Uyghur men shackled and blindfolded awaiting transport to a detention centre was "fake news" and "China bashing".

Australia's Foreign Minister and members of the Uyghur community condemned a video that purports to show a mass transfer of Uyghur men — their heads freshly shaved —blindfolded with their hands tied behind their backs in Xinjiang.

"In the era of artificial intelligence it's very easy to do that kind of video. You don't have the technology to test it to see if it's true," he said.

"You need 5G to test whether it's good or not. You need Huawei."

The video has been analysed by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, which suggested it was genuine.

Professor Wang conceded young Uyghur men were being targeted by the Chinese Government, but claimed it was because they were lazy, did not have jobs, and were causing trouble.

He vehemently denied they were sent to detention camps and forced to do manual labour, claiming they were instead sent to "training facilities" to prepare them for the workforce.

"I have visited Xinjiang many times for research. Why [don't] Australians cover the real picture about China," he said.

"You only select something to please you or your moral high ground and embarrass China. What benefit is there in that?"

Professor Wang also said China was deeply hurt over suspicion of telecommunications company Huawei and new foreign interference laws.

He said the Prime Minister's chance of being invited on an official visit to China would rely on Mr Morrison striking a "solid deal", such as on the Belt and Road initiative, in order to ensure any visit was not a "waste of time".

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