On Saturday, (October 12) Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for the first in-person met China’s premier Li Keqiang since 2019 and spoke about the 50th anniversary of their nations’ diplomatic relations.
The last meeting was held between former prime minister Scott Morrison and Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2019.
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The Australian prime minister claimed the meeting to be “positive and constructive.” Both leaders spoke at a gala dinner on Saturday night at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations conference in Phnom Penh, AFP reported.
Under the previous Australian conservative government, relations with China had recently deteriorated to an all-time low, and Albanese’s administration is all set to mend ties.
Albanese said that it was for the best that this meeting occurred, he said, ” I’ve said repeatedly about the relationship with China — that we should cooperate where we can and that dialogue was always a good thing.”
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On the other hand, a report by the state-run news agency Xinhua said that Li is all set to use this diplomatic anniversary to promote sustainability, and sound and steady growth of China-Australia relations.
However, the Asian country hit Australia with trade restrictions that cost the country with trade that cost billions of dollars in exports of trade and services.
The Labor leader is also expected to meet Chinese President Xi on the sidelines of the upcoming G20 summit in Bali.
(With inputs from agencies)
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