Australia warns of ‘long road’ ahead in stabilisation of relations with China

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said she had a ‘constructive’ meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in New York

Wong added she raised trade blockages and urged Beijing to use its influence as a great power to help end the Ukraine war during the talks

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Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong addresses the media at the UN headquarters in New York City on September 20. Photo: Reuters

Published: 11:01am, 23 Sep 2022Updated: 12:17pm, 23 Sep 2022

Fraught relations between Australia and China will be repaired only gradually, Canberra’s top diplomat warned on Thursday, after a rare meeting with her Chinese counterpart.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong described her New York sit-down with State Councillor Wang Yi as “constructive” but cautioned against talk of a quick normalisation of ties.

“I think it is a long road in which many steps will have to be taken by both parties to a more stable relationship,” she said.

China is Australia’s largest trading partner, but relations have atrophied in the last five years, amid disputes over Chinese overseas influence operations and Beijing’s crackdowns in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong.

Ties all but collapsed in 2020 when Canberra called for an investigation into the origins and early spread of Covid-19.

Beijing responded with a wave of punitive sanctions on various Australian imports and froze ministerial contacts.

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