Albanese Visits Beijing, Trying to Break the Australia-China Ice
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will visit China starting Saturday (4/11/2023). Australia is trying to defuse tensions in its relations with China which have worsened since the Covid-19 pandemic began.
This article has been translated using AI. See Original .
About AI Translated Article
Please note that this article was automatically translated using Microsoft Azure AI, Open AI, and Google Translation AI. We cannot ensure that the entire content is translated accurately. If you spot any errors or inconsistencies, contact us at hotline@kompas.id, and we'll make every effort to address them. Thank you for your understanding.
The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. The original article can be found in Albanese Kunjungi Beijing, Coba Cairkan Kebekuan Australia-China
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke to the media in front of the Australian Parliament building in Canberra on Sunday (22/10/2023), announcing his plan to visit China for four days starting on Saturday (4/11/2023).
BEIJING, SATURDAY — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will begin his four-day visit to Beijing on Saturday (4/11/2023). This is Albanese's first visit to China since becoming PM in 2022. The visit is seen as an effort to improve bilateral relations between the two countries that have been strained for the past three years.
Albanese is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday (6/11/2023). Both leaders will discuss a number of issues, ranging from the economic relationship between the two countries to regional and international concerns of mutual interest.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China said that this visit is an excellent opportunity to strengthen communication and expand cooperation between the two countries.
"China is willing to cooperate in making this visit an opportunity to increase mutual trust, expand cooperation, deepen relations, and promote sustainable bilateral relations. The healthy and stable relationship between China and Australia is in line with the fundamental interests of both countries and their people," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wengbin in a statement to the media on Friday (3/11/2023)."
This is Albanese's first visit to China after serving as prime minister in 2022. He is also the first Australian leader to visit China in the last seven years, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the first visit by Australian leader PM Gough Whitlam to China.
Also read: Australia-China Open the Way to Reconcile and Talk to Each Other Again
Many parties believe that this visit is an effort by the two countries to break the ice in relations that has persisted since the Covid-19 pandemic. Several Chinese media called the visit a new beginning for better bilateral relations. Chinese Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian in his opinion piece in the Australian Financial Review called this visit a new era in bilateral relations between the two countries after being tense in recent years.
A package of beef imported from Australia was sold at a supermarket in Beijing, China on Friday, May 15, 2020.
Xiao stated that the relationship between the two countries is at a critical point to start and sail again. He urged for more cooperation in traditional fields such as energy, mining, agriculture, education, and tourism.
The bilateral relationship between the two countries has heated up during the pandemic after Canberra urged Beijing to be open to experts who want to investigate the origin of the spread of Covid-19 which began with the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. Australia echoed the demands of the United States Government and several other Western countries. This is what has made their relationship tense.
Pressure from Australia resulted in stopping imports of a number of agricultural and livestock products from Australia, ranging from beef products, barley, wine, to cotton products.
Relations that continue to deteriorate not only have an impact on economic and trade relations, but also have an impact on relations in the fields of education and tourism. The Chinese government issued a travel warning (travel warning) to Chinese students and citizens visiting Australia against the possibility of racial acts against them.
The official and unofficial trade sanctions imposed by China on Australia has resulted in losses for Australian exporters of up to AUD 20 billion or approximately USD 13 billion per year.
The photo from May 14, 2019 shows frozen beef fillets from Australia, the United States, and Canada being sold in supermarkets in Beijing, China.
Also read: War of Words Impacts China's Suspension of Beef Imports
The first serious mistake by Australia in the eyes of Beijing occurred in 2018 after the policy taken by the Australian Parliament emphasized China as a security threat. At that time, the Australian Parliament passed a national security law which contained a ban on covert foreign interference in domestic politics and made industrial espionage by foreign powers a crime.
Two months later, the government banned Chinese telecommunications giant, Huawei, from launching its 5G network in Australia due to security concerns that were not specifically explained.
The election of the Albanese center-left government last year, replacing the conservative government, created an opportunity for restructuring. "Australia is interested in maintaining good relations with China," said Albanese in October 2022 when announcing the travel plans.
People walked past the signboard for Australian universities in the Melbourne central business district on June 10, 2020.
Albanese denied having made concessions to Beijing following the release of Cheng Lie, an Australian journalist who was detained for three years on suspicion of leaking Chinese secrets, in order to improve the relationship between the two countries. However, before his travel plans were announced, the Albanese government stated that it would not cancel the lease of Darwin Port, which has been managed by a Chinese company for 99 years.
Regarding this matter, the United States expressed its concern about the possibility of the facility being used to spy on their military presence in the "Land Down Under".
Also read: New Phase of Relations with China, Australian Agricultural Products Affected
Albanese has been criticizing the lease since it was signed in 2015. Some security analysts interpret the decision to allow Shandong Landbridge Group to retain the lease as a concession of sorts to Beijing.
Muffle
Although there are efforts to improve the bilateral relationship between both countries, particularly in the fields of economy and trade, Canberra does not want to be too excessive in its attitude, especially since they perceive that there are still obstacles in the area of security.
"China is our biggest security concern. China is also our biggest partner and we greatly value our productive relationship," said Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles to reporters in Washington a few days ago."
Foreign Minister of Australia Penny Wong also mentioned that despite some positive aspects in the bilateral relationship between the two countries, the Australia-China relationship will not return to what it was 15 years ago.
The photo provided by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on Wednesday (11/10/2023) shows Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (right) embracing Cheng Lei, an Australian journalist who was detained by the Chinese government for three years on suspicion of leaking state secrets.
Also read: Strengthening Maritime Defense, Australia Purchases Sea Mines
Executive Director of Asia Society Australia, Richard Maude, a former diplomat and author of Australia's foreign policy white paper in 2017, said that the list of issues causing tension between the two countries is very long. Although the Albanese government attempts to prioritize dialogue as the center of its approach towards China, most of its policies regarding security remain the same.
The problems in the South China Sea, Taiwan, and the competition for influence in the Pacific are some of the main obstacles in the relationship between Australia and China. China's aggressive stance in the South China Sea has not only faced opposition from the Philippines and a number of ASEAN member countries who do not want their territorial sovereignty to be disturbed. Opposition has also been expressed by the United States, Australia's key ally, as well as Britain.
"In the field of defense, the Albanian government has doubled its support to the United States in building military prevention structures throughout the Indo-Pacific. The duality of this approach is quite clear to China," said Maude.
Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong (left, seated) listens to Australia's Defense Minister Richard Marles (second from left, seated) as he speaks in front of the US delegation led by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Brisbane on Saturday (29/7/2023).
Also read: Cold War on the ASEAN Page
To enhance its territorial defense, Australia has agreed to purchase nuclear-powered submarines developed through US and UK technology. The collaboration itself took place within the framework of AUKUS, which is feared to be a boomerang for neighboring countries, including Indonesia.
Not only increasing the strength of its maritime defense fleet, in January 2023 Australia decided to budget 1 billion Australian dollars or around Rp. 10.5 trillion to buy sea mines. The purchase of sea mines is part of a plan to strengthen the maritime defense system as well as preparations for shifting new conflict arenas, in this case to prevent potential aggressors who are actively targeting Australia's territorial sovereignty.
Economy as anchor
The impact of worsening bilateral relations between both countries has been warned by many parties, especially businesspeople who rely on China as their largest market. Albanese said on Tuesday that a quarter of Australia's export revenue comes from China, more than the combined total of its next three trading partners, the United States, South Korea, and Japan.
The President of the Australia-China Business Council, David Olsson, stated that the economy, particularly trade, can become an anchor for stability and certainty in the relationship between the two countries amidst the dynamic and uncertain global situation. He believes that Albanese's presence in Shanghai will signal to the Chinese business community and system that there are positive aspects to the relationship with Australia as a trading partner, amid the dynamics of the two countries' relationship.
Several warships belonging to the Canadian, Japanese, and South Korean navies sailed alongside the Australian Navy warships, HMA Sydney and Perth, during the military exercise Pacific Vanguard on August 22, 2022.
Also read: Keeping ASEAN on the Right Track
The Chairman of the Global Engagement Committee of the Australian Business Council, Warwick Smith, emphasized the importance of continuing the dialogue between the two countries.
Last Monday, Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell announced that negotiations for a free trade agreement with the European Union had failed. At the same time, Farrell also revealed that the trade losses with China, which he had stated as a trade barrier, would soon decrease from its peak of AUD 20 billion per year to only AUD 1 billion or USD 643 million.
China strategic and international studies expert at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Jude Blanchette, said that with this effort, Australia is considered to be trying to find the right balance between security issues and the need to have a peaceful region and productive economic relations with China. He said the increasing discussion on risk reduction in Australia, or not being too economically dependent on one country, is likely to also be a concern of Albanese and Xi in the talks.
Wang Yiwei, a professor of international relations at Renmin University, said that China wants stable diplomatic relations with Australia to support economic relations. "China still hopes there will be a proper distinction between security and economics," said Wang. (AP/AFP/REUTERS)
