Australia’s Scott Morrison said reports of a Chinese spy ship describe a “very serious situation”. (File)
Canberra:
Highlighting the security threat posed by Beijing, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said reports of a Chinese spy ship sailing around Australia’s coast earlier this year highlight the “very serious situation”. ” in the Indo-Pacific region.
This comes after reports emerged in the UK that the Chinese vessel was spotted circling the Australian coast for three weeks in August and September, collecting electronic intelligence as it passed through the seas. sensitive military facilities, an Australian news website reported.
The report, first published in The Daily Telegraph, said that the Chinese ship – capable of monitoring communications and radar signals – was a Dongdiao-class ship. It is similar to the military exercise between Australia and the US earlier this year.
“I think the presence of the Chinese Navy – which we are aware of, and they are watching us and we are watching closely – the importance of that is to highlight to Australians that there is an very serious situation. in the Indo-Pacific,” Morrisson told reporters in Adelaide on Friday.
“They have every right to where they are. We know they’ve been there. They can be there according to international maritime law. But don’t think we didn’t keep an eye on them because they were looking for a way to let them be. eyes on us.”
Australia has to be able to stand up and that requires great strength, added Morrison. “I have been criticized by many people for the strong stance I have taken on this issue,” he said.
The British publication said the ship entered Australia’s 200km exclusive economic zone off Darwin in August before slowly making its way south, hugging the coastline.
According to reports, the ship monitored several key military training areas as it sailed as far south as Sydney, before crossing Tasman towards New Zealand.
Reports in Australian publications say that China regularly sends surveillance ships to monitor military exercises near Australia, including in 2017 and 2019. However, the latest appearance is believed to be unusual. usually because there are no war games or drills going on.
Confirming the sighting of the Chinese vessel, Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton said: “they are not breaking any laws”.
“This is not the first time. As you know during Operation Talisman Saber, a major exercise off the coast of Queensland, the PLA has also deployed several ships there. So they will participate in the collection. intelligence gathering, signal gathering,” he told the Nine’s Today program.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)
