Australia-China relations: Albanese says Beijing must lift sanctions on exports to reset ties

Anthony Albanese told reporters on Tuesday that Sunday’s meeting between high-level officials was ‘a good thing’ that had been ‘missing’ under his predecessor
But he said any further warming of relations would depend on China removing trade sanctions and barriers on Australian exports

China-Australia relations

Bloomberg

Published: 1:02pm, 14 Jun 2022

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has played down the possibility of a reset in relations with the Chinese government after a high-profile meeting between the two countries on Sunday, saying Beijing must first lift sanctions on a wide-range of Australian exports.

China is Australia’s largest trading partner and the biggest customer for its iron ore - its largest export earner - but diplomatic relations have been strained in recent years.

In imposing its sanctions, China listed 14 grievances with Australia ranging from its call for an international inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus, a ban on China’s telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies Co. building a 5G network, and screening foreign investment for national security risks.

Australia’s Defence Minister Richard Marles pictured with China’s Defence Minister Wei Fenghe on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Sunday. Photo: Australian Defence Department Handout via AFP

Australia’s defence minister, Richard Marles, on Sunday met his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe in Singapore, where both were attending the annual IISS Shangri-La Dialogue. It was the first public meeting between Australian and Chinese government officials in more than two years, following a diplomatic freeze amid rapidly deteriorating relations.

Marles said the meeting had been a “very frank and full exchange” but also a “critical first step” in restoring relations with Beijing.

At a press conference in Brisbane on Tuesday, Albanese said it was “always a good thing that people have dialogue and have discussions”, something which he said had been “missing” under the previous Australian government.

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But the new Australian leader, who was sworn into office after winning an election on May 21, said any further warming of relations with the Chinese government would depend on whether they agreed to remove trade sanctions and barriers on Australian exports.

“It is China that has imposed sanctions on Australia. They need to remove those sanctions in order to improve relations,” he said. “It is China that has imposed sanctions, it is China that has changed, and it’s China that needs to remove those sanctions.”

Following a call by then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison in April 2020 for an international investigation into the origins of Covid-19, Australian exports including timber, coal, meat and wine began to face difficulties entering Chinese ports, including tariffs and long customs delays.

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Australia’s former government described China’s sanctions on its agriculture and energy commodities as “economic coercion”.

China’s foreign ministry said on Monday that Albanese had responded to a message of congratulations from Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on his election win last month, adding that it too wanted to see action for ties to improve.

“To improve China-Australia relations, there is no ‘auto-pilot’ mode. A reset requires concrete actions,” China’s foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular press briefing in Beijing. He did not elaborate on the action China wanted.

Albanese declined to elaborate on what he had said to Li. “I responded appropriately,” he told reporters.

Additional reporting by Reuters