US vote result 'may impact China ties'

(AAP) - Australia's relationship with China could be affected by the US election results, a US diplomat says.

Former Clinton government official Derek Shearer said Republican candidate John
McCain would be more forceful with China, while a Barack Obama Democrat
administration was likely to be less confrontational.
Now visiting Australia on a US state department tour, the former US Ambassador to
Finland, Clinton administration official and adviser to Hillary Clinton, said he
expected tough foreign diplomacy from McCain.
"McCain has said that he'll try and throw Russia out of the G8 organisation because
of what they did in Georgia, they're going to stand up to the rise of the Chinese
military, they're going to stay in Iraq until victory, whatever that means, so in
foreign policy it will be a kind of revived, muscular version of Bush foreign
policy," he said.
"If Obama's elected ... in foreign policy he will bring back in the Clinton
professionals, who are less confrontational, stress diplomacy, stress working with
multi-lateral institutions."
Mr Shearer said Australia's relationship with China could be compromised if a new US
government took a hardline stance.
"Because one of Australia's big relationships, economically and diplomatically is
with China it would be very hard for Australia if the US and China got into a
military confrontation," Mr Shearer said.
"Under the ANZUS treaty, Australia would actually be obligated to go to war with us.
So the last thing Australia would want is for us to get hostile with China."
But there were also opportunities, he said, as Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's knowledge
of China may help influence America.
However, Mr Shearer said Australian politics realistically had very little impact in
America.
"Well to be frank about it, most Americans, like 99 per cent, have no idea there's a
new government in Australia," Mr Shearer said.
According to Mr Shearer, it never much matters who leads Australia, as their
influence will always be limited to reacting to whatever America does next.
"I think the question for the Rudd government, for any government in Australia is,
will a new American government do things in the world, either these economic issues
or foreign policy, that will affect Australia."
In terms of Iraq, he said, Americans don't care that Mr Rudd withdrew troops, in
fact most don't even know former prime minister John Howard sent them there.
And with America this week hit by a finance market meltdown, Mr Shearer said
Australia's banks may not be "light years" away from a similar crisis.
"I think the answer is right now they're in good shape, but they could be affected
by the continuation of this crisis, because everyone's interconnected globally."