Albanese weighs business and security ahead of Xi talks

Perth Now

3 hours ago

Political differences will bump up against economic opportunities as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese meets his Chinese counterparts in the imposing Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Tuesday's bilateral meetings with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and Communist Party Chairman Zhao Leji - the three highest-ranking members of China's ruling committee - mark the centrepiece of Mr Albanese's six-day tour of the Middle Kingdom.
President Xi is top dog in China, and the optics of Mr Albanese's rendezvous with one of the world's most influential leaders will be powerful.
But it's his meeting with Premier Li, notionally the head of government in China, that will deliver any tangible agreements from the trip if they occur.
The meetings come as the Chinese-Australian free trade agreement passes its 10th anniversary.
Co-operation between the two nations has increased following a falling out during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr Albanese will emphasise the potential for further developing business links at a CEO roundtable hosted by the Business Council of Australia on Tuesday evening.
Greater engagement between China and Australia has delivered practical benefits to both nations, building understanding between governments and businesses.
"It enables us to express our differences and to manage them, without our relationship being defined by them," he will say.
"This is about building stronger ties where our national interests are aligned."
Dialogue will help the countries work together to address the structural imbalances of global steel supply, maximise the economic opportunities of the global shift to net zero, and provide certainty and confidence for businesses to invest, he will say.
But fundamental political differences limit the extent of economic co-operation.
Mr Albanese is likely to raise Australian concerns over increased Chinese militarism, including Chinese naval exercises off Australian waters, and the detention of Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun.
Beijing's dissatisfaction over Australia's plan to tear up a Chinese-owned company's lease of Darwin Port is also likely to be broached.
An article by a Chinese state media influencer suggested Beijing could restrict Australian imports as retaliation, risking financial blowback for Australian companies.
Business Council of Australia chief executive Bran Black says the two nations' challenges and opportunities would be best met with dialogue.
"And that's exactly what this roundtable is about," he will say at the event.
"Today's agenda points to the breadth of that shared opportunity: education, smarter agriculture, the green economy and low-carbon transformation.
"But that opportunity is underpinned by the personal connections that we, collectively and personally, have the privilege to establish, re-establish, confirm and enhance today."
Expanding the free trade agreement further into the services and investment sectors will be high on the agenda of the roundtable, as will exploring co-operation in education, smart agriculture, health and aged care.
Green energy and low-carbon steel will once again be a hot topic after it formed the focus of a roundtable between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers in Shanghai.