The British Foreign Secretary has warned Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping that they will fight together with allies for democracy against dictatorships, which he describes as bolder than ever since the Cold War.
Speaking during her visit to Australia, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said the UK and its “free world” allies must respond together to global threats, deepen ties with democracies in the Indo-Pacific and confront “global aggressors” who use economic dependence to get what they want.
Truss and UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace met with Australian ministers in Sydney for the annual Australia-UK Ministerial Consultations (AUKMIN) where Australia’s nuclear submarine purchase agreement is discussed.
Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton said there are no plans to establish a British military base in the country. The two countries signed agreements to finance infrastructure in the region against Beijing’s influence.
In a joint statement, the ministers expressed their concern over Russia’s deployment of troops on the Ukrainian border and expressed their “absolute support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
Speaking at the Lowy Institute for foreign affairs think tank, Truss said Putin should “give up on Ukraine and step back before he makes a major strategic mistake”.
“As we know from the conflicts in Chechnya and the 1979-1989 Soviet-Afghan war, the invasion will only lead to terrible swamp and loss of life,” Truss said. Truss said global aggressors were “emboldened in a way we haven’t seen since the Cold War”.
“They are trying to export the dictatorship to the whole world as a service. That’s why regimes such as Belarus, North Korea and Myanmar find their closest allies in Moscow and Beijing,” said Truss, adding that Britain, especially in the Pacific, against aggressive global actors such as Australia, Israel, He noted that he needed to work with allies such as India, Japan and Indonesia.
Truss also noted that China’s economic pressure on Australia shows Britain that Beijing is using its economic power to exert control over other countries.
Beijing, which imposed trade sanctions on Australian goods after Canberra called for an international investigation into the origins of the Corona virus pandemic, denied accusations of economic pressure.
Asked about the British-Australian talks and their focus on countering China’s growing influence, China’s Foreign Ministry refused to draw such conclusions.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said, “The so-called Chinese threat is based on nonsense. China strongly opposes it, and we call on the relevant parties not to go on the path of creating a false division and conflict.”