LINE IN THE SAND
New Zealand Listener|April 2 - 8, 2022
The threat China poses in the Pacific is real, and NZ must act, says ex-Australian PM and China expert Kevin Rudd.
BERNARD LAGAN
LINE IN THE SAND

Australia's former Labor prime minister, Kevin Rudd - long a scholar of China and its threat to the West - has urged New Zealand and Australia to pool military resources, beginning with joint maritime and air force patrols of the South Pacific.

“That's not really an option in my mind. It is now necessary for both of us," Rudd told the Listener in an interview to promote his new book, The Avoidable War. The book sets out a road map by which the former politician and diplomat hopes China and the United States might avoid war, and what he terms “global carnage on an industrial scale".

Now president of the Asia Society - a well-funded and influential New York-based think tank - Rudd is regarded as one of the West's foremost China experts. He did, after all, graduate from the Australian National University with honours in Chinese studies, and is fluent in Mandarin. As well as his two and a half years as Australia's prime minister, he also served as foreign minister, before resigning from Parliament in late 2013.

Rudd notes that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has prompted some Western nations - notably Germany - to urgently increase defence spending. Coincidentally, Japan and Australia have also announced larger defence outlays.

"How much more New Zealand should do is a matter for the Kiwis," says Rudd. “But I think we are all just responding to the realities. Whether it's Tokyo, whether it's Berlin, whether it's Canberra - everyone's responding to, as it were, the changing nature of the world and the region.”

The arrival next year of New Zealand's fleet of new P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft to replace the six ageing P-3K2Orion aircraft offers an opportunity, he believes, to combine Pacific Ocean patrol operations with Australia. It has acquired the same aircraft, based on the Boeing 737 airframe.

Bu hikaye New Zealand Listener dergisinin April 2 - 8, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye New Zealand Listener dergisinin April 2 - 8, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

NEW ZEALAND LISTENER DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
First-world problem
New Zealand Listener

First-world problem

Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.

time-read
3 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Applying intelligence to AI
New Zealand Listener

Applying intelligence to AI

I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.

time-read
2 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Nazism rears its head
New Zealand Listener

Nazism rears its head

Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.

time-read
2 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Staying ahead of the game
New Zealand Listener

Staying ahead of the game

Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?

time-read
4 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Grasping the nettle
New Zealand Listener

Grasping the nettle

Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.

time-read
3 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Hangry? Eat breakfast
New Zealand Listener

Hangry? Eat breakfast

People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.

time-read
3 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Chemical reaction
New Zealand Listener

Chemical reaction

Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.

time-read
4 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Me and my guitar
New Zealand Listener

Me and my guitar

Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.

time-read
2 dak  |
September 9, 2024
Time is on my side
New Zealand Listener

Time is on my side

Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?

time-read
7 dak  |
September 9, 2024
The kids are not alright
New Zealand Listener

The kids are not alright

Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.

time-read
4 dak  |
September 9, 2024