From what I can see Airbus Albo has achieved very little other than a series of photo ops.

All the grand statements of communication etc are not worth the paper they are printed on.

Hi Foxy,

Just returned from a week in the Cook Islands where we went to attend a nieces wedding to a local "Cookie" whose been her partner for years here in Brisbane. Guess who now runs much of the local businesses in tourism/retail, that's right Asian folk. They have invested a fair amount into the local economy, and there were quite a number of younger Chinese tourists running around the place on scooters ($15 rent per day).

p/s The Cook Islands is one of the smallest countries in the world, consisting of 15 populated islands with Rarotonga being the main island, the countries population is only around 17,000 with the majority living on the main island. Tourism accounts for 65% of the economy.

Dear Paul,

Congratulations on the family wedding!
It must have been wonderful to share some
joy - with what's going on in the world currently.

Our relationship with China is based on maintaining
strong economic links plus or longstanding community
and cultural links. It's good that the current government
remains committed to a mutually beneficial and
respectful relationship with China.

The fact that our PM and our Foreign Minister made the
trip and were welcomed so warmly showed that a mutually
beneficial relationship was achievable. It will do wonders
for our economy.

It will also help Australian businesses to enter and promote
Australia as an investment, tourism, and education
destination - as you saw happening where you visited in
the Cook Islands.

You can't ignore a country who is your largest two way
trading partner and on whose network you rely.

Phillip Coorey writing for The Australian Financial
Review makes the following observations:

"Albanese came to China with his eyes wide open and
with the full support of the business sector and the
National Security Establishment."

"His aim now is to stabilise. To agree where we can,
and disagree where we cannot. Albanese's mantra is simple.
It is always better to manage strong disagreements,
difficulties, and differences through dialogue than
hostile stand offs."

Coorey stresses that - "if this trip results in a
resumption of annual talks and the cessation of coercive
trade sanctions while giving up little in return - that's
a pretty good outcome.

Foxy, Hi ! The saying should more truthfully be: "How much soy sauce would you like with your next meal of grass?" Anyone believing that Xi (and the CCP) are beneficent should read Sun Tzu's "Art of War". The ring of confidence - no not the Colgate one, is rapidly being closed in the southern/western Pacific. Successive Australian governments - Labor & Liberal have let the ball slip past the keeper. Meanwhile as the War On Terror soaked up men, women & materiel at unprecedented $Aus per annum, the respective cabinets of the past 25 years could not see, or did not want to see for offending and "losing face", the impending situation & the awakening dragon on our doorstep. To our north, Momote airfield on Manus Island, my former home, is now the site of the closest/largest airfield capable of taking Chinese military transport aircraft to Australian soil at RAAF Scherger. Vanuatu to our north east, similarly will become another imminent threat in the form of PLA naval bases. The Germans in the late 1800's saw the strategic importance of their new colonial acquisitions in PNG, establishing state of the art Marconi radio stations at Seeadler Harbour (Lombrum - now PNGDF Tarangau/ & formerly Manus Is Detention Centre)and Rabaul. Indeed these were the locations of the first military/ naval actions by Australians to take place in WW1. The Americans established a huge facility on Manus Is during WW2. Submarines, nukes, canoes & whatever will not save us, even if they were available and manned and on patrol by competent crews in the next 5 years. Best learn to speak Mandarin so we can abuse our new bosses in something they understand.

Hi Albie,

Thank you for your comments. Our Prime Minster we've
been told came to China with his eyes wide open and
with the full support of the business sector and
the National Security Establishment.

His aim now is to stabilize the relationship with China.
Whether he succeeds - we shall have to wait and see.
He was welcomed warmly - so apparently China also sees
it in their interests to work through dialogue than
hostile stand offs.

If as we're told this trip results in a resumption of
annual talks and the cessation of coercive trade
sanctions while giving up little in return as already
pointed - that is a pretty good outcome.