Australia’s PM praises China development following discussions

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has stated that there has been notable improvement in relations with China following discussions with President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

Mr Albanese arrived in Shanghai on Saturday. He is the first Australian leader to go to China since 2016.

The four-day visit is seen as an important step towards improving relations, after a series of disagreements over trade and security.

Trade is very important- Mr. Albanese wants Chinese tariffs on Australian goods to be stopped.

Mr Xi was expected to request permission to have more involvement in important Australian industries.

Both men promised to keep working together for the benefit of their countries, even though they had disagreements in the past.

President Xi welcomed Mr. Albanese to the Great Hall of the People. He said that China and Australia have the potential to become trusting partners and are on the right path to improving and developing their relationship. This was reported by state broadcaster CCTV.

Mr Xi told Mr Albanese that Beijing wants to maximize the benefits of the China-Australia free trade agreement.

Before their discussions, Mr. Albanese explained to reporters that we should work together with China when possible, but also express our disagreements when necessary and participate in things that benefit our country.
I believe there are encouraging indications. We have already seen some barriers to trade between our countries being removed, and there has been a significant increase in trade between our countries.

He is going on a trip after tensions between Australia and China. This was because Australia wanted to investigate where Covid-19 came from, and China responded with sanctions on Australian exports like beef, wine, and barley.

This also happens at the same time as the 50-year anniversary of when Gough Whitlam, an important Australian leader, went to China to meet with Mao Zedong in 1973. It was the first time an Australian prime minister visited China after the two countries started having official relationships.

Reporters asked Mr Albanese if Australia can “trust” China. He answered that his previous interactions with Mr Xi have been “good” and “helpful”.

However, we understand that we have different ways of governing, different beliefs and principles, and different past events that shape our societies. But we judge and interact with each other based solely on our appearances and first impressions.

However, there are many issues and worries about safety that need to be resolved in the talks happening on Monday.

Yang Hengjun is an Australian writer who has been held in prison in China since 2019. His health is getting worse, and there are people in Australia asking their leader, Mr. Albanese, to help get him released.

Experts say that Canberra’s increasing military relationship with the United States and its recent changes to its defense strategy, which are believed to be aimed at countering China, may create challenges in finding common ground between the two countries, other than their economic interests.
Some experts think that Beijing might want to get more access to Australia’s resources and renewable energy industries. However, the Australian government has been taking steps to prevent Chinese companies from owning important minerals and mining projects.

Mr Albanese said to the reporters that he was happy with the way Australia and China talked and worked together during the meeting.

He mentioned that Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the troubles in the Middle East were discussed during the meeting. However, they did not talk about the “14 issues” that China had with Australia when their relationship was in a bad state.

Mr Albanese said it was important to talk about guardrails and military collaboration between the United States and China.