Penny Wong started Thursday with some fish ball and noodle juk, not so different from her childhood in the Sabah region of Malaysia.
The congee-like dish of the Foh Sang coffee he frequented with his father was as good as he remembered, the best he ate on a two-day trip.
But the context of her return home, as a Malaysian-born Australian foreign minister trying to delve deeper into the country’s soft power in Southeast Asia, was very different.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong returns to her hometown of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, on Thursday, June 30, 2022. (Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs)
“I hope my personal story can contribute to the relationship, but more importantly, what I want to emphasize is that it’s not just my story,” he told reporters in Kota Kinabalu on Thursday.
Wong said he hoped his story, which included life and schooling in Sabah until the age of eight, could help improve Australia’s relations in the area.
“You’re watching parts of my life here, but this story can be told by so many Australians,” he said.
“The story of migration, the story of balik kampung (back home), the memories of where you come from and what that means about who you are.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong returns to her hometown of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, on Thursday, June 30, 2022. (Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs)
“And this is a very important part of Australian history.”
Wong’s return to the region has been widely covered in the Malaysian press, as the new foreign minister sets her sights on Southeast Asia after a diplomatic effort in the Pacific immediately after taking office. charge.
“I think it matters that Australia speaks to Southeast Asia in a way that recognizes that we are part of that region and that our future is shared,” he said.
“These are difficult times in the world. We all seek to navigate these difficult times and we do better when we do it together.
“And that community comes from the understanding that our future prosperity and security are shared.”
Wong’s visits to Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Samoa and Tonga were partly influenced by China’s strong diplomatic push into the region.
Dealing with China, recently declared a “security threat” by NATO’s European military alliance for the first time, seems to be the key challenge for Wong in the role.
In the coastal city on the disputed South China Sea, Wong reinforced the importance of pursuing international law for “all states in the region,” when asked about Beijing’s influence.
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“A lot of our trade goes through the South China Sea,” he said.
“There is a reason why it is important to comply with international law.
“This is the position that Australia will continue to take and the countries in the region will continue to take.”