By Darrell Egan

Hot on the heals of of Kamala Harris tour of South East Asia spouting that China is a nefarious influence in the region, whilst promoting that the US will not make South East Asian countries choose between China and the US, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne is now on jumped on the Quad Security Dialogue bike for a ride through Asia.

The Quad Security Dialogue group bike as I refer is the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue group established in 2007 by ex Vice President Dick Cheney, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, former Australian Prime Minister John Howard and ex Indian Prime Minister Monmohan Singh.

Dick Cheney as we know has had a war Hawk record in the false Weapons of Mass Destruction falsehood with John Howard coming on board dragging Australia into the Iraq war with the United States.

Shinzo Abe’s family side has also not had a good record in war. Sinzo Abe’s grandfather Nobusuke Kishi was imprisoned for only three years as a Class A war criminal.

Nobusuke Kishi in his role in Imperial Japan’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry he started the use of sex slave women in Japanese occupied Manchuria signing a law for the use of such slaves in 1937 which could be used by Japanese soldiers.

He oversaw the use of sex slave from Japanese occupied areas of China and south East Asia as Vic Minister of Commerce and Industry. Estimates of 360,000 to 400,000 sex slave comfort women were used by Imperial Japan in WW2 many of the female sex slaves were under aged.

After his light 3-year release Nobusuke Kishi he became a member of the Liberal Party in Japan and went on to be the Prime Minister of Japan in 1957.

China and most countries in Asia in general are in no hawkish mood for war, knowing the scourge and horrors of war in their region and on their home soil from WW2.

The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue group call for a what they describe as a “Free and Open Indo Pacific.”

The cornerstone of this Quadrilateral Security Dialogue agreement is the statement of the enhancement of co operation with countries that share Japan’s Security interests in line with the US Japan alliance.

This is basically a Japan US hegemony in the Indo Pacific in a further effort to increase encirclement of China with US bases in South Korea, Japan, Philippines and the Marshall Islands with weapons pointed at China.

Added to this encirclement of China is the strike Force aircraft carriers in the South China Sea alongside with Australia’s Navy and US weapons pointed at China just under 10 kilometres off China’s coast on Kinmen Island near a bay on the coast of Xiamen China.

Kinmen Island location, and US M1 Howitzer on Kimen with 23 km range

These weapons can bombard China’s Xiamen Port city.

During his leadership from 2007 to 2010 previous Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd withdrew Australia from the Quad group for Australia to have a more independent approach to the Indo Pacific.

In a move taking Australia closer to re-joining the Quad Security Dialogue group former Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard enhanced US and Australian cooperation in regard to the Indo Pacific by allowing a US marines base near Darwin, even though there is not invasion threat in that region.

In 2017 former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull took Australia back into the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue group in cooperation with former US president Donald Trump, Indian Prime Minister, Nerendra Modi and former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Now with Australia back on the Quad bike, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne is on a ride to Indonesia, India and South Korea before heading over to Washington to report.

Her itinerary includes meeting with Indonesia’s defence Minister Prabowo Subianto to discuss Australia’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement with Indonesia.

It has to be remembered in the Lombok Treaty between Australia and Indonesia signed in November 2006 between then Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and Indonesia Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda, the agreement forbids Australia supporting East Timor style Independence for West Papuans, who are enduring Indonesian occupation and Human Rights violation brutality by the Indonesian military.

The other part of Marise Payne’s trip is to meet up with South Korea’s Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and Minister for National Defence Suh Wook to elevate Australia’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership which include strategic military cooperation with South Korea.

Indonesia and South Korea appear to be encouraged to jump on board Marise Payne’s Quad Security Dialogue bike.

Similar discussions will be held in India, then it is off to report to head office in Washington.

Marise Payne’s Quad Security Dialogue group bike ride through Asia will leave tracks of an elevated hawkish strategic military approach in Asia and more potential of military escalation than peace in the Indo Pacific.

This article was originally published on Dazza Egan Australia & China Watch Journo.