China-Australia ties on the right track: Li Qiang
China's relationship with Australia is on the right track, Premier Li Qiang said in Canberra on Monday as the two trading partners moved on from their economic dispute. The highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Australia since 2017, Li held high-level talks with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese following a welcome ceremony at Parliament House. "In less than one year Prime Minister Albanese and I have met multiple times and exchanged visits to each other's country," Li said following their meeting. "This shows that our countries attach great importance to our relationship and that this relationship is on the right track of steady improvement and development." Li said he and Albanese had a "candid exchange of views on some differences and disagreements", and the two countries have agreed to properly manage those differences. The premier added the further development of bilateral ties requires joint efforts from both sides. In his opening remarks, Albanese said China and Australia had complementary economies and shared interests in addressing climate change. "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. “Australia advocates that we should all work together to promote a regional balance where no country dominates and no country is dominated.” Starting in 2020, a slew of Australia's most lucrative export commodities were effectively banned from China as diplomatic relations rapidly unravelled. But as ties have gradually improved under a new government in Canberra, Beijing has wound back most of these trade barriers. "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," Albanese said. He also described the discussions with Li as constructive. Premier Li also said the two countries would expand cooperation in energy and mining, and China would include Australia in its visa waiver programme. And the two sides will take steps to improve military communication to avoid incidents. "One of the very practical measures that we spoke about was improving military-to-military communication so as to avoid incidents," Albanese said. In an incident last month, a Chinese air force jet dropped flares near an Australian defence helicopter in international airspace over the Yellow Sea. Canberra called it a dangerous encounter whereas the Foreign Ministry in Beijing accused the Australian military of provocative and threatening behaviour. Li visited New Zealand before Australia and is scheduled to stop in Malaysia on Tuesday before returning to China. (Agencies)_____________________________
Last updated: 2024-06-17 HKT 13:47 