AUSTRALIA – FOREIGN RELATIONS – CHINA

Yang’s death sentence unlikely to stop Li visit

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Original article by Will Glasgow
The Australian – Page: 2 : 7-Feb-24

Sources have indicated that Chinese Premier Li Qiang is still is expected to visit Australia in late 2024. It would be the first visit by a Chinese leader since 2017, and is unlikely to be affected by a Beijing court’s decision to give Chinese-Australian academic Yang Hengjun a suspended death sentence on espionage charges. Associate professor Feng Chongyi says the federal government should make Li’s forthcoming state visit conditional on the release of Yang, whose sentence could potentially be reduced to life in prison after two years of good behaviour.

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Australian academic Yang Hengjun given suspended death sentence by Chinese court

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Original article by Helen Davidson, Ben Doherty, Paul Karp
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 6-Feb-24

Foreign Minister Penny Wong says the federal government is appalled by the decision of a Chinese court to impose a suspended death sentence on Australian academic Yang Hengjun. An Australian citizen who was born in China, he was arrested in 2019 at Guangzhou airport, accused of spying for an undisclosed foreign country, and has been in detention ever since. A spokesperson for his family said the court’s decision was at the "extreme end of worst expectations", while Human Rights Watch’s Australia director, Daniela Gavshon, said Yang’s sentence was "catastrophic".

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

Prominent Australians urge Albanese government to adopt activist middle power role to head off war between US and China

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Original article by Daniel Hurst
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 31-Jan-24

Academics, former politicians and social justice advocate are among 50 prominent Australians who have signed a joint statement calling for the federal government to take a key role in easing tensions between the US and China. They have called for a ‘new detente’ between the two nations in order to reduce threats to both regional and global peace and prosperity. The signatories have argued that Australia can play an ‘activist middle power diplomacy’ role, in close consultation with its key neighbours in the Indo-Pacific region.

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PM urged to be honest over Xi meeting

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Original article by Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 2 : 22-Nov-23

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is facing growing pressure to reveal whether he discussed a naval incident with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the recent APEC summit in San Francisco. Albanese stated on Monday that he does not disclose the discussions he has with any world leader, but he said allegations that divers from HMAS Toowoomba were injured by a sonar pulse from a Chinese warship have been raised in the "appropriate way". Opposition leader Peter Dutton says Albanese need to be "honest" as to whether he had discussed the issue with Xi. He has also described China’s denial that it had breached international laws as "propaganda". The incident took place within Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Albanese accuses China of dangerous, unsafe and unprofessional behaviour in naval ship altercation

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Original article by Josh Butler, Amy Hawkins
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 21-Nov-23

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has responded to revelations that divers from the HMAS Toowoomba were injured by a sonar pulse from a Chinese warship in international waters last week. Albanese has criticised the Chinese vessel’s conduct, and stated that the federal government had made strong objections to China regarding the incident. However, Albanese has declined to comment on whether he raised the issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the recent APEC summit in San Francisco. Kevin Rudd, Australia’s ambassador to the US, says it is longstanding practice not to comment on the content of conversations between leaders.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Albanese and Xi to restart annual talks

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 8-Nov-23

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese held talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing on Tuesday. Li said the meeting will mark the resumption of annual talks between the leaders of the two nations. Albanese had previously held formal talks with Li in Jakarta in September; it was the first meeting between an Australian prime minister and a Chinese premier since Scott Morrison held talks with the late Li Keqiang in Bangkok in November 2019. Meanwhile, Albanese and Li have agreed to a number of initiatives aimed at improving relations between the two nations, including the introduction of multi-entry visas.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

PM’s China visit life and death for jailed writer

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 1-Nov-23

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has indicated that he will raise issues such as human rights and China’s growing presence in the South China Sea during his upcoming official visit to Beijing and Shanghai. The family of Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun has urged Albanese to also raise his case with Chinese officials. Yang has been detained in China for nearly five years without receiving an official verdict on alleged espionage offences. Yang’s two sons are concerned that he will die from medical neglect if he is not released soon. Journalist Cheng Lei recently returned to Melbourne after three years’ detention in China on similar charges.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

China wine tariffs under review

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Original article by Will Glasgow
The Australian – Page: 4 : 23-Oct-23

The Chinese government imposed tariffs of more than 200 per cent on Australian wine in 2020 as part of a widespread imposition of tariffs on Australian exports after the former Coalition government called for an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19. However, China has announced that it will review its tariffs on Australian wine. Shadow foreign affairs minister Simon Birmingham – who was trade minister at the time the tariffs were imposed – said they were "an attempt at economic coercion by China".

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

PM urged not to visit China till sanctions go

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 2 : 26-Jul-23

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese remains under pressure to postpone a proposed official visit to China amid ongoing trade tensions. Warwick Smith from the Business Council of Australia says China’s trade sanctions are an "endless point of contention" that must be addressed before Albanese considers visiting China. Smith says the Productivity Commission’s recent finding that the trade restrictions had resulted in little impact on the Australian economy shows that China’s stance had been a "political own-goal"; however, he notes that individual companies had been heavily impacted by the sanctions. The wine industry in particular has found it hard to secure alternative export markets.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

Albanese urged to cancel China trip as Hong Kong vows to pursue exiled democracy activists for life

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Original article by Daniel Hurst
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 5-Jul-23

The federal government has stated that it will not tolerate any foreign interference on Australian soil, in response to Hong Kong’s move to issue arrest warrants for pro-democracy advocates Kevin Yam and Ted Hui. Hong Kong’s CEO John Lee has warned that Yam, Hui and the other six activists will be "pursued for life" if they do not surrender, adding that Hong Kong authorities will continue to "monitor" their actions and behaviour while they are overseas. Shadow home affairs minister James Paterson says Prime Minister Anthony Albanese should reconsider his proposed official visit to Beijing in the wake of Lee’s threats.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET