“They’ll always blame their own government if (China) problems arise – even if the problems have nothing to do with government policy,” he complains of an elite amongst whom he once prominently numbered.Ī bilateral meeting aboard the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, May 2017 (White House/Flickr) Trading partners And so, Turnbull ironically partly blames his more uncertain China legacy on Australian business. In the end Turnbull implies he got the measure of Trump: “For all our differences, as two businessmen, we spoke the same language.” But having gone from a Sinophile investment banker in China in the 1990s to the prime minister whose last policy action was to ban Chinese telecommunications company Huawei, Xi proves a more difficult nut to crack. “I reminded Xi of my longstanding interest in Chinese history and culture and that I had used those lines many times in the past … It was intended to convey respect,” Turnbull says of the letter designed to restore the bilateral relationship. We are family,” Turnbull writes in a bid to fix the damage caused some months earlier when he had co-opted a famous 1949 phrase of Mao Zedong to explain Australia’s crackdown on foreign influence peddling in domestic politics. It goes well beyond our economic relationship. We share a region and our futures are inextricably linked. In the end Turnbull implies he got the measure of Trump. Just a month later on May 22 Turnbull is back at his desk penning a noticeably more deferential letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping, which he reveals then Foreign Minister Julie Bishop personally delivered to her Chinese counterpart. On 27 April 2018 Turnbull wrote to Trump to head off tariffs on Australian steel exports to the US but in doing so reveals his assessment of the president: “Like Kerry Packer (a media tycoon and former Turnbull mentor), he is more a listener than a reader, so to be effective a letter has to be short and punchy and written not just to be read, but to be read aloud – more like a script.”Īnd so, with ample bold letters and italics, Turnbull tells the man he addresses as Donald:Ī massive US$25 billion surplus in your favour! How good is that? “The one thing I’d learned with bullies is that sucking up to them is precisely the wrong way to go,” the former prime minister observes about preparing for meeting US President Donald Trump.īut it is the revelation of two previously unreleased letters to the two most powerful men he has ever had to deal with that best frame the foreign policy of a short-lived prime minister trying to punch above his weight in a changing world. Trump and Turnbull were all smiles as they answered questions about the phone call and refugee deal during a picture-taking session.From media baron Rupert Murdoch to leadership rival Peter Dutton, Malcolm Turnbull’s new memoir* released this week is partly built on his self-assessment that he can size up a bully better than most. House of Representatives who narrowly passed a healthcare bill that would repeal and replace the 2010 Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. The get-together with Turnbull was delayed because of Trump’s hastily arranged White House celebration with fellow Republicans from the U.S. Vice President Mike Pence visited Australia in April and made clear that while Trump was not happy about it, the United States would honor the agreement out of respect for Australia. The call aroused criticism and raised questions about his diplomatic skills. Trump had broken off what was supposed to be an hour-long call after 25 minutes and later tweeted that the refugee agreement was a “dumb deal” and vowed to study it. The Republican president became irritated that he was expected to honor an agreement made by his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, to accept 1,250 refugees. Turnbull was one of the first foreign leaders Trump spoke to after taking office on Jan.
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