Australia’s Albanese and China’s Li hold ‘candid’ talks

CANBERRA - Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chinese Premier Li Qiang met on June 17 in the first visit to the country by a Chinese premier in seven years, with trade ties, regional security and a jailed Australian writer on the host’s agenda.

The visit by Mr Li, China's top-ranked official after President Xi Jinping, marks a stabilisation in relations between the US security ally and the world's second-biggest economy, after a frosty period of Beijing blocking A$20 billion (S$17.9 billion) in Australian exports and friction over defence encounters.

“We welcome the continued stabilisation and development of our bilateral relations. This dialogue has allowed us to build a deeper awareness of our respective interests,” Mr Albanese said in opening remarks.

Australia and China had complementary economies and shared interests in addressing climate change, he said.

“We also have our differences… that’s why candid dialogue is so important. For Australia, we consistently advocate the importance of a region and world that is peaceful, stable and prosperous, where countries respect sovereignty and abide by international laws,” he said.

After the meeting, Mr Li told reporters the leaders held a “candid, in-depth and fruitful meeting and reached a lot of consensus”.

“We both agreed to uphold the right characterisation of our bilateral relationship and consolidate its momentum...and handling this relationship in a positive attitude,” he said.

The two countries would expand cooperation in energy and mining, and China would include Australia in its visa waiver programme, he added.

“We both stressed the importance of maintaining communication and coordination to jointly safeguard peace and prosperity in the region and beyond,” he said.

Mr Albanese told reporters after the meeting the two countries had revitalised engagement and he was “determined to keep growing our relationship where we can”.

“China remains overwhelmingly Australia’s largest trading partner. Australian farmers, miners and exporters are already seeing the benefits of the removal of trade impediments - benefits that flow to our economy,” he said.

On regional issues, he had told Mr Li that “Australia advocates that we should all work together to promote a regional balance where no country dominates and no country is dominated”.

Protesters and supporters gathered on the morning of June 17 on the lawn outside parliament house in Canberra, where there was a heavy police presence, as a ceremonial welcome was held for Mr Li.

Barricades separated Tibetan, Uighur, Hong Kong and Falun Gong protesters from a large contingent of pro-China supporters.

Tibetan Tenzin Wougyal, 37, a Canberra resident, said he came to show Tibet’s culture, religion and language are at risk.

“Australia should be cautious about what it is doing – don’t sacrifice human rights for short term economic business,” he said.

Mr Tan Zhu, 50, said he travelled from Sydney to welcome Mr Li, and was also at Canberra airport when he arrived.

“The relationship with Australia has become much better. That’s very positive,” he said.

Beginning with some panda and wine diplomacy on June 16, Mr Li is on a four-day visit that Australia's foreign minister called "really important" and which the Chinese leader said showed bilateral relations were "back on track".

Without China - which receives one-third of Australia's exports and supplies one-fourth of Australia's imports - Australians would pay 4.2 per cent more for consumer items, an Australian business group said on June 17.

Trade with China increased Australia's average household disposable income by A$2,600 in 2023, contributing 595,600 jobs or 4.2 per cent of total employment, said the study by Curtin University and the Australia China Business Council.

"Managing geopolitical risks and concerns around defence and security will remain at the forefront of Indo-Pacific discussions," the report said. "Trade is not disconnected from these discussions."

Australia is the biggest supplier of iron ore to China and China has been an investor in Australian mining projects.

Mr Li's visit will likely raise the issue of whether Australia will continue to accept high levels of Chinese investment in its critical minerals sector, as Western security allies push to reduce reliance on Beijing for the rare earths vital to electric vehicles.

Human rights is an area of less harmony for Beijing and Canberra.

The suspended death sentence for China-born Australian writer Yang Hengjun was upheld by a Beijing court ahead of Mr Li's visit, his supporters said on June 16.

They urged Mr Albanese to ask Mr Li to allow Yang's transfer to Australia on medical grounds, saying in a statement it was "not possible to achieve a stable, respectful bilateral relationship with China while their officials are threatening to execute an Australian political prisoner".

Yang, a pro-democracy blogger and spy novelist, was working in New York before his arrest at Guangzhou airport in 2019.

Australia has described his February sentence as "harrowing", casting a shadow over the recent rebound in bilateral ties. REUTERS