October 31, 2007	Wednesday	Shawwal 18, 1428

SYDNEY: Australia under Prime Minister John Howard has been an unwavering ally of the United States, but if Labour leader Kevin Rudd wins next month’s elections there will be a Sinophile in the top job.

Rudd, a Mandarin-speaking former diplomat who charmed a visiting President Hu Jintao with his mastery of the language, is certain to push for a strong relationship with Beijing, analysts say.

“Mr Rudd is quite a conservative foreign policy person,” political analyst Nick Economou said.

“But we do know that he’s got a very great interest in China, sees China as a very important country, not just economically but for other reasons as well.” During a speech to a business lunch attended by Hu in September, Rudd stunned the crowd by reminiscing about his years in China in Mandarin.

“My wife and I have a particular love for Beijing,” he said. “We love the feeling of Beijing. We love the people of Beijing, and of course, its culture.” Rudd went on to mention that his two sons had taken Mandarin lessons and his daughter this year married a member of Australia’s Chinese community.

The speech appeared to impress Hu, and will win the centre-left leader votes among the Asian community, according to Tony Pang, president of the non-partisan Chinese Australian Forum.

“The intonation is just perfect, you can’t believe it,” he said.

Nowhere will the Asian vote be more important than in Howard’s Sydney electorate of Bennelong, home to the nation’s second-largest Chinese-born population.

Howard, who opinion polls are predicting will be swept from office on Nov 24, is struggling to retain the seat seen by some as a bellwether “eye of the dragon” electorate.

Pang said the Chinese community had not altogether forgotten remarks Howard made in 1988 that it could be in Australia’s best interests to slow down Asian immigration, but many felt he had made sincere atonement since.

“Some Chinese forgot about it, but some Chinese feel that no, can we trust him?” he said.

Immigration will be an issue for Asian voters in the election which threatens to end Howard’s 11 years in office, although the overriding concern will likely be the economy, Pang said.

But China itself is also an issue, with Howard forced to fend off criticism that the economic prosperity on which he has staked his bid for a fifth term is a result of the Asian giant’s demand for raw materials as much as good management.

“Resources are gratefully a big part, but there’s more to the economic miracle that Australia’s been over the last 10 years than the resources boom,” Howard told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

“So I reject entirely the argument that it’s all about China.” But analysts said the Asian superpower’s seemingly insatiable demand for mining resources has undeniably assisted Australia’s long-running boom.

“When they talk about economic management, they are talking about low inflation, low interest rates, and booming resources sales,” said Stuart Harris of the Australian National University.

“If you think about these three things, they are all related to China.” Harris, a professor in international relations, said while Australia’s relationship with China was unlikely to change as a result of the election, voters could consider the influence of the Asian superpower when they vote.

“The emphasis on the economy may mean people do have to look at it to some extent,” he said.—AFP