The China Syndrome: Part One - Is China taking over the South Pacific? | 60 Minutes Australia

it's no secret Australia's relationship with China is as complicated as it is fragile on the one hand they're the key to our economic prosperity so if we want to be rich warm n-b-c I'd John Koren on the other hand we fear China's expanding tentacles of influence we don't want them getting too close which brings us to the South Pacific somewhat arrogantly Australia has always considered it our patch of paradise to protect and nurture but now the Chinese are moving in splashing their cash in places like Fiji and Vanuatu so what's next a Chinese military base right on our doorstep the tropical playground of Fiji it'd be hard to think of a more idyllic location for two nations to discreetly at least butt heads but that's exactly what was happening in Suva Harbor last week flying the flag for Australia were the warships Melbourne and Adelaide and quietly stalking them a Chinese spy ship pretending not very well to be a fishing vessel now that's a Space Surveillance ship is a scientific ship the seriousness of this highly planned coincidental meeting was not lost on anyone is China's aim to be the most powerful nation in the world I think in the very long term yes it's got global ambitions and it's challenging the rules-based international order should we be worried about China setting itself up in the South Pacific absolutely these days around the South Pacific the Chinese seem to be everywhere and they're hard to miss you've only got to look at the money they're throwing around on new buildings but security analyst dr. Malcolm Davis says what seems like much-needed economic assistance for these penniless countries comes at a high price what the Chinese tend to do is that they put heavy investment into countries that simply don't have the means to pay back the debt so they're getting countries addicted to debt and then when they call in the debt and the countries can't pay the Chinese will take a port or a territory or take an island you basically make them sound like political loan sharks in effect yes if China can get a country so deep in debt that it can't pay back that debt then China will take something else in return which brings us to neighbouring Vanuatu and more specifically the key strategic outpost of loganville during World War two this was America's second largest base in the Pacific now China has built an immense wharf it claims is to help the Vanuatu government attract cruise ships to the region that the wharfs builders did such an impressive job many are questioning their motives there's the strategic part who you say there's got to be more to it there's got to be more to it yeah absolutely the Chinese wouldn't be building all this just to cash in on a very limited tourist market here so what do you think in their heart of hearts they're after they're thinking commercial influence political influence and ultimately a military presence at half a kilometer long dr. Davis reckons this Wharf is complete overkill for the local cruise industry it is however the perfect size for a visiting foreign Navy and that's means it's large enough to accommodate large Chinese naval service combatants guided missile destroyers cruisers what are we saving aircraft carriers we could talk an aircraft carrier in there as well when you look at this - alarm bells go off in my mind absolutely because if the Chinese were to bring naval forces into this region it fundamentally changes our strategic outlook in a way not seen since the 1940s of course wharves this solid don't come cheap but China has let Vanuatu put the 114 million dollars it costs on their tab which currently stands at 220 million dollars is this a debt trap yes so the Chinese would be hoping Vanuatu couldn't keep up with the debt repayments look I think I don't think the Chinese are doing this out of the goodness of their heart they're not investing in Vanuatu to help the venom are to people they're investing in Vanuatu to help themselves this doesn't only happen in the South Pacific China has form when it comes to deathtrap diplomacy the impoverished African nation of Djibouti was the most a Goering 1.2 billion dollars and China has used part of that debt to create a fully fledged naval base there and last year Sri Lanka defaulted on a massive Chinese loan for a port that many believe it didn't need in the first place China now owns the port on a 99 year lease what do you think of the type of businesses that the Chinese government is investing in here or the projects or the projects there are too big for oil country back in Vanuatu's capital Port Vila taxi driver William taboc says he and everyone he knows is worried about China's growing dominance already we know that we borrow a lot of money from China do you think too much it's too much it's too much everyone and if you ask anyone on the street and we are frightened of China finding too much projects Port Vila is littered with Chinese built landmarks that have locals scratching their heads this huge stadium was built form of regional games in 2017 and by the look of the hoarding it hasn't been used for much since then and even more controversially this gigantic convention center that the government can't even afford to pay the power and cleaning bills for let alone staged events at we went for a drive the other day we had a taxi driver and we drove past the convention center and he pointed at that and said what a waste of money that is not what our country needs what do you say to that criticism yes I would agree with that can't even pay the electricity bills there ah yes that's true we're trying to find a solution to make it work for us Vanuatu is remarkably frank foreign minister is Ralph French in Varna he concedes his country has made errors in its dealings with China but denies any suggestions that the massive war fat loganville is more for China than it is for Vanuatu what if any water gets into financial strife and China comes to you and says all right look we'll bail you out we'll get rid of the debts just give us the war fat Loganville and we'll call it even what do you say to them we I can't imagine that offer but we have built that wolf for our economic development we want we want Luke and Phil to become a major commercial hub not only for Vanuatu but for the region so can you give us a 100% guarantee right now that China will not have a military base ever in Vanuatu yes I can give you that guarantee we are a non-aligned country we're a member of the non-aligned movement so this big power player that's happening in which China is involved in which this trailer is involved I don't know what unorder wants to be no part of it but Malcolm Davis is wary of the Vanuatu government's assurances about Chinese intentions and says everyone in Australia should be as well Vanuatu is only about 1,500 nautical miles from Sydney and if the Chinese get or establish a military base Vanuatu or indeed any other South Pacific state then suddenly we have the prospect of Chinese military forces very close to the Australian eastern seaboard so you're saying this is a military threat it's not a military threat now but it could be a military threat into the future coming up what do you think China's master plan is in this region domination China setting its sights on the entire South Pacific is that China's goal to be the top dog absolutely we reveal their sneaky race for cow what do you think if they can pump money in here they'll get support at the UN yes because you have to have it that's broadly that's next on 60 minutes hello I'm Tara brown thanks for watching to keep up with the latest from 60 minutes Australia make sure you subscribe to our Channel you can also download the 9 now app for full episodes and other exclusive 60 minutes content

Channel: 60 Minutes Australia

Views: 1,105,093

Rating: 4.1430311 out of 5

Keywords: China, South Pacific, military, Vanuatu, Samoa, army, navy, Fiji, military base, Australia, Tom Steinfort, 60 Minutes, 60 Minutes Australia

Id: AGl3HxEMJhI

Length: 9min 24sec (564 seconds)

Published: Mon Jun 18 2018

Reddit Comments

[u/AutoModerator]

PLEASE READ! The mod team of this subreddit is NOT here to hide or remove political opinions and views you do not like or disagree with, and will only step in if 1. Sitewide Rules, 2. Subreddit Rules, or 3. Subreddit Civility Guidelines have been broken. In general, please be courteous to others. Attack ideas, not people. Failure to use this subreddit in a manner which complies with the above standards and user expectations may result in a temporary or permanent ban.

If you see comments in violation of the rules, please report them!

If you think someone is a troll, DON'T BITE THEIR BAIT and DON'T FEED THEM BACK!

We hope you can understand what we are aiming for here. Stay Classy!

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.