2-9-2023 (SYDNEY) Australia’s foreign ministry announced on Saturday that a delegation comprising representatives from various sectors, including industry, government, academia, media, and the arts, will travel to Beijing next week for a dialogue with their Chinese counterparts. The purpose of these talks is to stabilize the relationship between the two countries, which have experienced strained ties in recent years.
The upcoming discussions, scheduled for next Thursday, will cover a range of topics, including trade, investment, people-to-people connections, as well as regional and international security. The dialogue, previously held annually since 2014 but discontinued in 2020, aims to foster mutual understanding and identify areas of common interest.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s office stated that these talks represent a significant step towards increasing bilateral engagement and stabilizing the relationship with China. The Australian delegation will be led by former trade minister Craig Emerson, with the inclusion of former foreign affairs minister Julie Bishop.
Emerson highlighted the dialogue’s history of deepening mutual understanding and finding common ground with Chinese participants. Leading Beijing’s delegation will be Li Zhaoxing, China’s former foreign affairs minister.
The resumption of the high-level dialogue reflects a thawing of tensions between Beijing and Canberra, following a period of strained relations. Australia’s legislation against overseas influence operations, its exclusion of Huawei from 5G contracts, and its call for an independent investigation into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic had previously sparked displeasure from China.
However, since the center-left government in Canberra adopted a less confrontational approach to China after last year’s election, relations between the two countries have shown signs of improvement.
