Albanese government ‘weak’ on China: Peta Credlin

Sky News host Peta Credlin has slammed the Albanese government for being “weak” on China by not doing anything at a political level to signal displeasure with Beijing following the flare stunt over the weekend. A Chinese fighter jet dropped flares in front of an Australian Navy helicopter in international waters off the coast of South Korea on Saturday evening. Defence Minister Richard Marles has labelled the incident ‘both unsafe and unprofessional’. “So far, the Chinese military haven't killed any of our service personnel, yet the risk is real given they have deliberately and callously put them in harm's way,” Ms Credlin said. “When this incident was uncovered by the media, remember, the government didn't call a press conference here to disclose it; Defence Minister Richard Marles … admitted that the action by the Chinese military was unsafe and unacceptable. “The Australian Prime Minister might have talked tough when pushed on the threat to our military from the Chinese fighter jet but done nothing at all – nothing at all at a political level to signal Australia’s displeasure with the Chinese. “Any wonder, given how weak this Labor government is when it comes to China, that we then get this response from Beijing - an arrogant declaration that whatever happened, it was Australia's fault for daring to be in international waters close to China.”