Australia’s top diplomat set to visit China

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Australia’s top diplomat Penny Wong will pay a visit to China on Tuesday, signaling the warming up of bilateral ties.

“Building on the recent constructive meeting” between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Bali, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Indonesia last month, Wong said she will travel to Beijing at the invitation of her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

“Australia seeks a stable relationship with China; we will cooperate where we can, disagree where we must, and engage in the national interest,” the minister said in a statement, adding the two sides will hold the 6th Australia-China Foreign and Strategic Dialogue.

It is the first trip to China by any Australian foreign minister since 2018 when Australia-China Foreign and Strategic Dialogue was last held.

The Albanese-Xi meeting was also the first since 2016 when Xi met former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in Germany on the sidelines of a G20 summit.

Wong’s trip to Beijing also comes as this week marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

“In 1972, then Prime Minister Gough Whitlam took a bold decision, recognizing the importance of engagement and cooperation between our two nations and peoples,” said the Australian foreign minister.

“In the decades since, China has grown to become one of the world’s largest economies and Australia’s largest trading partner.”

Wong and Wang also held at least three phone calls until the last month before this scheduled trip of the Australian top diplomat.

“Trade between Australia and China, as well as strong people-to-people, cultural and business links have delivered significant benefits to both our countries,” she added.

Bilateral relations between Australia and China spiraled down under former Prime Minister Scott Morrison whose administration joined the US and other allies to seek a probe into the COVID-19 origins besides ramping up an alliance to counter Beijing’s expanding influence in the wider Asia-Pacific region.

The Albanese administration appears to follow in the same footsteps, cementing its bilateral relations with smaller Pacific Island nations where China has of late built its influence mostly through soft power in the form of medical, educational, and infrastructure investments.