Loading And he announced his intention to visit Japan and India early next year, cementing relations with both countries at a time of public strains with China, which has strongly opposed the "quadrilateral" forum for more than a decade. 'Positive and practical globalism' The warning about global agencies sets out the Morrison government's key principles after US President Donald Trump told the United Nations General Assembly last week that "the future does not belong to globalists" and would belong to "patriots" instead. Mr Morrison said Australia sought a "responsible" approach to addressing global issues, calling this "positive and practical globalism" and rejecting isolationism and protectionism.

"But it also does not serve our national interests when international institutions demand conformity rather than independent cooperation on global issues," he told the Lowy Institute in Sydney on Thursday night. "The world works best when the character and distinctiveness of independent nations is preserved within a framework of mutual respect. This includes respecting electoral mandates of their constituencies. "We should avoid any reflex towards a negative globalism that coercively seeks to impose a mandate from an often ill-defined borderless global community. "And worse still, an unaccountable internationalist bureaucracy." Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video

Mr Morrison did not name specific issues or global agencies but his government has rejected calls for bigger commitments to the peak United Nations convention on climate change and has broken with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on the treatment of asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru. In his speech, delivered at Sydney Town Hall to an audience including Lowy Institute founder Sir Frank Lowy, he argued for the primacy of national governments over international commitments. "Globalism must facilitate, align and engage, rather than direct and centralise," he said. "As such an approach can corrode support for joint international action. "Only a national government, especially one accountable through the ballot box and the rule of law, can define its national interests. We can never answer to a higher authority than the people of Australia.

"To paraphrase former Prime Minister John Howard, as Australians, 'we will decide our interests and the circumstances in which we seek to pursue them'." 'Australia does not have to choose between the US and China' One week after his state visit to Washington DC, where he tightened his personal relationship with Mr Trump and delivered a significant speech that raised hackles in Beijing, Mr Morrison insisted Australia did not have to choose between two great powers. "Even during an era of great power competition, Australia does not have to choose between the United States and China," he said. "China is our comprehensive strategic partner. The strategic importance of our relationship is clear."

Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Mr Morrison cited China's power as the world's second largest economy, biggest goods exporter, largest manufacturer and biggest banking sector to reiterate his view that it was no longer a developing economy. "That's why when we look at negotiating rules of the future of the global economy, for example, we would expect China's obligations to reflect its greater power status," he said. "This is a compliment, not a criticism. The Chinese government rejected Mr Morrison's argument last week, insisting it remained a developing economy and should be treated as such at the World Trade Organisation.

Loading While Mr Morrison made no mention of any Beijing visit, his declaration about India and Japan contrasts with the fact that no Australian Prime Minister has visited the Chinese capital since Malcolm Turnbull in 2016. The mention of the "quadrilateral" is significant in the light of the first meeting of the foreign ministers from the four nations on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week. This was the first meeting of the group at ministerial level after the Rudd government stepped back in response to fears in Beijing the four allies were aligned against China. "Our government has worked patiently to restore trust and confidence following the Rudd government's policy to disconnect from the Quad," Mr Morrison said.