Penny Wong’s controversial comments on Britain’s colonial history have caused “no sense of discomfort or diplomatic tension,” a senior official within the Australian foreign minister’s department said.
In a Senate Estimates Committee hearing on Feb. 16, Jan Adams, the most senior official at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said that while Wong’s comments in the context of modern Britain were “unexceptional,” it was not the mainstay of the discussions.
“There was no sense of discomfort or diplomatic tension whatsoever. I can say that with complete confidence,” Adams said.
In her speech to the King’s College in London on Jan. 31, Wong said that the United Kingdom needed to deal with its colonial past so that it can strengthen ties with countries in the Indo-Pacific….