China to work with Australia for more mature, stable, fruitful comprehensive strategic partnership — Premier Li

CANBERRA, June 17 (Xinhua) — Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Monday that China is ready to work with Australia to build a more mature, stable and fruitful China-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership to better benefit the two peoples.

Li made the remarks during the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders’ Meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Li noted that this year marks the 10th anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Australia and the establishment of the China-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership.

Looking back at the development of China-Australia relations over the past decade, the most important experience and inspiration is to uphold mutual respect and mutually beneficial cooperation, and seek common ground while shelving differences, he said.

Since Prime Minister Albanese’s visit to China last November, China and Australia have further restored and developed dialogues and cooperation in various fields, achieving a comprehensive turnaround in bilateral relations, Li said.

He said that China is willing to work with Australia to maintain and develop the current hard-won positive momentum of bilateral relations.

The essential characteristics of China-Australia relations, said Li, are mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, and the development of China and Australia is an opportunity rather than a challenge to each other.

China is willing to stick to its comprehensive strategic partnership with Australia, give full play to the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue and other mechanisms, continuously boost trade, actively expand cooperation in new energy vehicles, renewable energy power generation and other fields, and strengthen sub-national, cultural and tourism exchanges and cooperation, he said.

Li also expressed the hope that the Australian side can provide a fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises, and provide more convenience for personnel exchanges between the two sides.

China is willing to enhance coordination and cooperation with Australia at regional and international levels, oppose bloc confrontation and a “new Cold War” from the perspective of maintaining regional peace and stability, adhere to openness, inclusiveness and common development, and work together to advance regional economic integration and build an open world economy, Li said.

For his part, Albanese said Australia is pleased to see the current Australia-China relations have stabilized and improved. Australia adheres to the one-China policy and does not support “Taiwan independence.”

Australia supports China’s development and prosperity and highly appreciates China’s major contribution to the world’s poverty alleviation cause, he said.

Australia is willing to maintain dialogue and communication with China and take the opportunity of the 10th anniversary of the two countries’ comprehensive strategic partnership to deepen cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, energy, culture, environmental protection and climate change, strengthen exchanges between the two countries’ legislatures, not letting differences define bilateral relations, so as to promote the continuous improvement and development of Australia-China relations, Albanese said.

More Chinese students and tourists are welcome to study in or travel to Australia, Albanese added.

The two leaders agreed to stick to the orientation of the China-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership, consolidate the momentum of improvement and development of China-Australia relations, and jointly maintain regional and world peace, stability and prosperity.

The two sides will hold the 10th Meeting of the China-Australia Joint Science and Technology Commission, the 8th China-Australia High-Level Dialogue and the 8th Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Change this year.

China will include Australia in the list of unilateral visa-free countries. Both sides agreed to provide each other with reciprocal access to multi-entry visas of up to three to five years’ duration for tourism, business and visiting family members.

The two sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.

After the meeting, the two leaders jointly witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral cooperation documents related to strategic economic dialogue, implementation of the free trade agreement, climate change, education and culture, among others, and jointly met the press. The two sides issued the Statement on Joint Outcomes of the China-Australia Annual Leaders’ Meeting. ■

Full Text: Statement on Joint Outcomes of the China-Australia Annual Leaders’ Meeting

Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hold the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders’ Meeting in Canberra, Australia, June 17, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)