Australia PM hails Xi meeting as a step towards stabilising ties
AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hailed a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday (Nov 15) as a move towards normalising ties that have spiralled in recent years.
“This was another important step towards the stabilisation of the Australia-China relationship,” Albanese said in a statement after meeting Xi in Bali, Indonesia, on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit.
“We are always going to be better off when we talk to each other, calmly and directly,” he added. “There are many steps yet to take.”
It was the first face-to-face meeting between leaders of China and Australia in almost three years, after relations rapidly deteriorated between Beijing and Canberra during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s call for an international investigation into the origins of Covid-19 in April 2020 prompted China to place trade sanctions on a number of Australian exports, including wine, barley and coal.
The disagreement escalated to the World Trade Organization, and Albanese has previously said the lifting of the sanctions on Australia would be a precondition for any major warming in the relationship with China.
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Yet both countries have maintained a close economic relationship despite the long-running diplomatic tensions. China is Australia’s largest trading partner, particularly when it comes to Beijing’s large, lucrative demand for iron ore.
Since coming to power in May, Albanese’s centre-left Labor government has worked to stabilise the relationship with Beijing, with the prime minister saying they would “cooperate where they can” while still standing up for Australia’s domestic interests. The new prime minister has maintained his predecessor’s move towards strengthening security ties with the US, including the Quad and Aukus security groupings.
Albanese’s foreign and defence ministers have met with their Chinese counterparts over the past six months, while the Australian leader had a brief face-to-face encounter with outgoing Premier Li Keqiang at the Asean meeting in Phnom Penh.
According to Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua, Li told Albanese that China was willing to meet Australia “half-way.” BLOOMBERG
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