JUST ARRIVED IN CANBERRA

Just arrived in Canberra.

The AUKUS agreement has moved this country a long way towards being a client of the United States. Were the Australian people consulted on that? No.

Australia should be neutral, and should be working towards a united Asia rather than adding to the tension. China is our largest trading partner. The rhetoric coming out of Washington is already intensifying — do we really want to help inflame it? We would suffer economically, and in the event of a war it would be a disaster for everyone in it.

So I am calling on Australians to get off your asses.

It is time to get together in groups out the front of government buildings and tell the government exactly what you think of this deal. This nation should be a unifier in the Asia-Pacific, not a divider.

Come to Canberra, or organise your own group where you are. This matters — and I think a lot of Australians feel the same way about being pulled into somebody else’s war.