G7 foreign ministers meet: Liverpool hosts Britain's eastern ambitions

Invitation to Asean nations for G7 meeting part of strategy to check China

Indonesia's President Joko Widodo met Britain's Foreign Secretary Liz Truss at the presidential palace in Jakarta last month. EPA

The ultra-modern architecture of the Museum of Liverpool’s spiralling staircase and giant pillbox window will be the backdrop for Britain’s continuing journey eastward.

Reflecting the city’s imperial past and more left-leaning present, the high galleries will from Friday to Sunday host the G7 foreign ministerial that will focus on how to tap into Asia’s growing economic presence and how to check China’s increasing might.

In her former job as international trade secretary, Liz Truss negotiated several post-Brexit deals that gave her insight into the flourishing East Asian economies — and more importantly into China.

This perhaps explains why the new British foreign secretary invited her counterparts from the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) to the conference of the democratic world's leading seven nations.

The Omicron variant means that representatives from Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia on Sunday morning will join the meeting virtually, but that should not put off the real business.

Ms Truss has shown a demonstrable interest in Asia, with her first speech as foreign secretary on Wednesday mentioning Asean nations twice.

Closer relationship on the agenda

So what is the invitation’s subtext? The communist elite in Beijing clearly cannot avoid the message that the West is steadily moving to check its influence in Asia.

Hostile words from politicians in Britain, the US and Australia are one thing, but there now appears a clear objective to forge alliances with Indo-Pacific countries and the 10 countries of Asean in particular.

There are some in Asean who will be dissuaded from forging such alliances due to the reaction from Beijing, which others that have been trampled on by China may see it as an insurance policy to build closer ties with the West.

None of this is said in official western diplomacy, however, at least not directly. Diplomats have made clear that they recognise the importance of Asean countries and now want to take matters to a more formal footing.

Over the next decade, it is predicted that 90 per cent of world trade will be done in Asia, hence the shift in interest to the Indo-Pacific region.

The Asean invitation is linked to the G7 becoming more broad-based, with Indo-Pacific trade and security in its sights, suggests Michael Clarke.

“The UK’s tilt is very much a political one more than anything else,” said the Royal United Services Institute think tank expert.

“It’s to create better dialogues with significant Asian countries and we know that Liz Truss is genuinely keen, that she's a convert to the Indo-Pacific mission.”

He also suggests that the manoeuvres are part of a “significant push to condense China across the region”, with Australia leading the way.

“Britain shares the view that we shouldn't be frightened of China and we want to show that our options are not constrained by fear of China,” he added.

Submarine row echoes

China could view the G7 expansion as a further development of September’s Aukus agreement — in which the UK and the US agreed to build nuclear-powered submarines for Australia — and that it is facing an increasingly hard-edged military approach.

The Asean invitation might also be a diplomatic move to placate Indonesia and Malaysia, which have criticised the agreement.

This is not something Ms Truss readily admits to.

“I will be hosting our friends and partners to discuss how we build closer economic, technology and security ties globally,” she said in a statement.

“I want us to build a worldwide network of liberty that advances freedom, democracy and enterprise and encourages like-minded countries to work together from a position of strength.”

Ms Truss is also said to be very keen to show that the G7 has, in a practical sense, an attractive offer to make to the Asean countries.

While Britain to some degree tempers its views on China, the US has been more direct.

“On security, [US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s] meetings will focus on strengthening the regional security infrastructure in response to [China's] bullying in the South China Sea,” Daniel Kritenbrink, US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, said on Wednesday.

The US strategy of gathering allies that surround its rival is clear. After Liverpool, Mr Blinken will travel to Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand as part of President Joe Biden’s “sustained engagement with Indo-Pacific countries”, said Mr Kritenbrink.

“America’s security and economic interests are intrinsically tied to the preservation of the rules-based order that has served all of us so well. President Biden is committed to elevating US-Asean engagement to unprecedented levels, expanding our formal engagement and co-operation,” he added.

The message to China is clear: if it does not abide by the international rules-based system, Britain, the US and their growing list of potential allies will counter it as a powerful bloc.

The great unknown is, when challenged by this, will Beijing choose concession or confrontation?