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Howard Launches Diplomatic Whirlwind
Australian Prime Minister John Howard launches a diplomatic whirlwind as his pre-election campaign.
It is speculated widely that he will call the general election in November, mostly possible on November 17 after the meeting of the commonwealth government heads in Brisbane on October 6-9.
He conceded earlier that it will be a tough one for his Liberal- National coalition government. Now he is trying to open a new diplomatic aspect to realize the dream to enter his third term of prime ministership.
On August 1, he visited Japan and met Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. In Japan he persuaded Toyota to re-invest into a troubled car manufactory in Australia. More significantly, he must discussed the proposal on three-wing "Unofficial Dialogue" between the United States, Australia and Japan, which Australia raised at the Australia-America annual ministerial meeting at Canberra three days before the visit.
On August 12, the prime minister visited Indonesia and became the first foreign statesman to meet new Indonesian President Megaqati Sukarnoputri. It was a diplomatic victory for Howard.
Since former Indonesian President Suharto was deposed in 1998, the Howard government swiftly shifted the country's East Timor policy and proposed a referendum in the former Indonesian province which led to its breakaway. When bloodshed occurred, Australia initiated and then led the multinational forces to enter East Timor. The action destroyed the relations between the two neighbours.
However, Howard had vowed not to visit Jakarta until the Indonesian president first came to Australia. His condition was satisfied in June when then Indonesian President Wahid visited Canberra.
Returning from Jakarta on Tuesday, Howard said proudly that "We took a stand as you know in relation to East Timor. It was the right stand and one that has won Australia great respect and great credit around the world." He added that "We don't walk away from it, we don't retreat from it, we don't in any way apologize for it, but we move on and we look to focusing on things (with which) we can find common ground with Indonesia."
Now the prime minister is preparing his historic visit to the United States. He plans to pay a ten day visit from September 8 to 18 an be the first Australian prime minister since Bob Hawke to address the U.S. Congress.
Howard has something like Bush-obsession. He broke the Kyoto Protocol following George W. Bush and supported warmly the Bush- version missile defense system.
The Age daily reported Wednesday that the U.S. trip of the Australian prime minister will forge a new high-level relationship with the Bush administration covering a landmark free trade and investment agreement, new cooperation on information technology and discussions on the post-kyoto approach to climate change as well as globalization.
All these efforts as election campaign will be examined by the forthcoming general election.
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