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Rudd spoke to students at Beijing University and addressed world political and business leaders at the Boao Forum on Hainan Island in southern China. He is the first Western leader to make his public speeches in fluent Chinese, winning him top marks with Chinese audiences.
Never before has a foreigner become so popular overnight among Chinese people as "Lu Kewen" -- Rudd's self-selected Chinese name. Henry Kissinger, the former U.S. secretary of state, perhaps enjoyed similar popularity in the early 1970s because of his contribution to the normalization of ties between China and the United States.
Rudd's background reveals his long-time interest in China. He earned a degree in Chinese language and history at Australian National University in Canberra, and served at the Australian Embassy in Beijing in the 1980s. He is familiar with Chinese history, politics and even literature, as he demonstrated by quoting Chinese poetry in his speech at Beijing University. His children also speak Chinese; both sons have studied Chinese in China, and his daughter married a Chinese from Hong Kong last year.
Rudd is fully aware of the force of his China card, and knows how to wield it to serve his country's national interests. He elaborated on the purposes of his China trip in terms of trade, climate change and energy.
China has now replaced Japan as Australia's biggest trading partner, which could explain Rudd's decision to visit China and skip Japan on his first overseas trip after becoming prime minister. China imports iron ore, copper ore, coal, wool and fish roe from Australia, among other things.
Rudd showed his awareness of Chinese sensibilities by his friendly tone during his speech at Beijing University. He stressed the need for Australia to maintain a "continuing, profound and sincere friendship" with China, and made a point of saying he supported the Beijing Olympics.
Many analysts believe Rudd can serve as a bridge with Western countries in ironing out differences on issues such as human rights, ideology, political systems and institutional regimes regarding norms, rules and other legal affairs. Rudd closer engagement with China seems to signify that he is willing to do the job.
It is certain that no one is more qualified to take up this task of reconciliation. Australia has deep roots with the United States and Britain regarding language, religion, culture and political systems. It is also a quasi-security partner with the United States and Japan.
Australia's geographic location also makes it a suitable bridge between China and Western countries; it is almost the same distance from the U.S. island state of Hawaii and China's southern coast. Australia also is a natural neighbor to Japan. Therefore if a free trade zone is established Australia would be a real center between West and East.
As for relations with China, Australia's experience as a former colony may allow it to better understand China's experience of the 19th century, including the Chinese people's sentiments over having part of their territory occupied by foreign powers.
What's more, Australia to some extent is still developing, like China. And it shares China's problems in that there is an imbalance in terms of regional prosperity and in its ethnic minority conflicts. This may help Australians understand Chinese "backwardness," and allow them to take a more fair view of human rights issues in China.
However, the biggest challenge for Australia to be a qualified "connector" of East and West will be its ability to adapt its diplomacy to Chinese cultural attitudes. It must recognize and respect China's Confucian mentality in terms of its domestic hierarchy, its concept of saving face in the international community, and its view of security strategy as being primarily defensive rather than offensive.
If Australia chooses to ally with Western countries to contain China both economically and ideologically, it will lose the opportunity to play this bridging role. The best course of action may be maintaining its policy of engagement with China and making the most of its China-savvy prime minister's skills and popularity to develop a new level of trust on all sides.
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(Zhang Quanyi is an associate professor at the Zhejiang Wanli University in Ningbo, China, and a Ph.D. candidate at Shanghai International Studies University, studying policy making and collective identity. His research interests focus on conflict management and identity construction. He can be contacted at qyzhangupi@gmail.com. ©Copyright Zhang Quanyi.)
