‘Very different countries’: Wong bridges great divide in high-stakes Beijing meeting

Beijing: Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong raised sensitive issues of trade blockages and human rights during her high-stakes meeting with her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, in a historic dialogue that paves the way for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to consider visiting Beijing next year.

In her opening remarks before the meeting began, Wong said she would like to discuss “several issues of importance for Australia, which include consular matters, trade and economic matters, trade blockages, human rights and the global laws and rules that underpin our security and our concern”.

Penny Wong was presented with a giant commemorative envelope during a ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Australia and China. Credit: AAP

The meeting produced no concrete public breakthroughs but flagged progress on trade as Australia attempts to negotiate a way out of sanctions that have hit half a dozen industries.

“There was a discussion about opportunities for further dialogue to work through how we might do what is in the best interest of both countries and certainly in terms of Australian exporters and Chinese consumers,” Wong said after the 100-minute meeting in Beijing. “That is for the trade blockages to be removed”.

The foreign minister did not rule out Beijing’s bid to join the Comprehensive Trans-Pacific Partnership [CPTPP] but warned any country that wished to become part of the massive trade bloc needed to meet its free trade requirements.

“Any economy that seeks to join the CPTPP would need to ensure that all parties to the agreement are confident that they could meet its very high standards,” she said.

Wong said she and Wang recognised that Australia and China were very different countries but that both governments were seeking common ground to manage the relationship.

“We have very different political systems. We have very different views about how our political system should operate. And we have different interests. But we need to seek to manage those differences,” she said.

Jailed Australians’ plight raised

The Albanese government is pushing for the resumption of annual leaders’ meetings between Australia and China as well as the return of regular trade talks following Wong’s visit to Beijing.

The reboot of annual bilateral trade and economic talks, following the foreign minister’s dialogue, could provide a crucial forum for Australia to work with its largest trading partner on the removal of tariffs on $20 billion worth of Australian exports.

In the first visit to China by an Australian minister in three years, Wong used her meeting with Xi Jinping’s foreign minister to urge Beijing to lift trade sanctions on Australian goods worth $20 billion and to raise the case of two Australians detained in China – journalist Cheng Lei and writer Yang Hengjun.

At a press conference after the meeting, Wong said she called for Cheng and Yang to be reunited with their families “as soon as possible”.

“We advocate for a range of things,” Wong said. “They include for those Australians to be reunited with their families as soon as possible, but we also advocate for the observance of consular agreements.”

Wong also acknowledged the heightened global tensions between China and its rival superpower, Australia’s close ally the United States.

The meeting received the endorsement of Xi before talks began, signalling China is placing a high priority on advancing negotiations out of more than three years of tension.

In an exchange of messages with Governor-General David Hurley to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations, Xi said he attached “great importance to the development of China-Australia relations”.

“And I am willing to work with Australia to take the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations as an opportunity; adhere to the principles of mutual respect, mutual benefit and win-win results; promote the sustainable development of China-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership; and continue to benefit the two countries and the two peoples.”

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong raised the detention of Cheng Lei and Yang Hengjun during her meeting with China’s foreign minister Wang Yi. Credit: AAP/Lucas Coch

Global tensions, diplomatic challenges

Reflecting on the 50th anniversary of the two nations establishing formal diplomatic ties, Wong said “that was a time when nations worked together to prevent geopolitical competition from descending into conflict and chaos. Fifty years on, we again find ourselves facing great challenges”, citing both climate change and COVID, and calling for dialogue “to manage these challenges”.

Wong noted when they last met, Wang said a sound China-Australia relationship was not in contradiction with safeguarding national interests.

In his opening remarks, Wang also spoke of the difficulties between Australia and China in recent years.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong meets her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing,Credit: AAP

“In the last few years, our relationship has encountered difficulties and setbacks,” Wang said. “This is what we do not want to see. The lessons must be learned.”

“As important countries in the Asia-Pacific, we have highly complementary economic structures,” Wang said, insisting there was “no historical grievance, or fundamental conflicts of interests between our two countries”.

Social distancing diplomacy

Wong’s trip to Beijing is the first ministerial visit since former trade minister Simon Birmingham travelled to China in November 2019.

The talks were held as Beijing braced for another difficult winter with a massive wave of COVID sweeping the country, which long-held a COVID-zero policy.

Flanked by the Chinese and Australian flags, Wang greeted Wong on a red carpet outside a villa at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, before the two foreign ministers shook hands and posed for photographs.

The talks were held in a flower-bedecked room where long tables were set two metres apart in keeping with social-distancing regulations.

The room at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing where the Australia-China talks were held. Credit: AAP

Australia’s ambassador to China, Graham Fletcher, said he is “protesting vigorously” against a ban on consular visits to jailed citizens in China introduced as lockdown restrictions have returned.

Diplomats have not been able to visit detainees like Australian Chinese journalist Cheng Lei and writer Dr Yang Hengjun since September after China enforced a total ban on consular access for all countries to prisoners due to a surge in COVID cases.

“At the moment because China is experiencing a (COVID) surge, it has unfortunately stopped regular (consular) access to all prisoners ... for all countries. We are protesting vigorously about that,” he said.

Penny Wong speaking to media after arriving in Beijing.Credit: AAP

Continuing talks

Commenting on the future directions for the bilateral relationship, Fletcher said he would like Wong’s meeting with Wang to be followed by the return of an annual leaders’ meeting between the premier of China and Australian prime minister.

The last official annual leaders’ meeting was in November 2019, when Scott Morrison met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Bangkok.

“But another key element is the Strategic Economic Dialogue, which brings the treasurer and the trade minister together with their counterparts here,” Fletcher added.

The ambassador said that in recent years “China has learned that Australia has a sense of itself and a national interest”.

This masthead reported earlier this week that Wong’s visit was expected to produce an agreement to restore a series of regular bilateral policy dialogues that have been suspended since China essentially cut off all high-level contact with Australia.

Wong is the first foreign minister to travel to China since Marise Payne in 2018 after years of increasing hostility over human rights, national security, trade strikes and COVID-19 led Beijing to shut off all high-level contact between the nations.

Wong referred to heightened global tensions during her opening remarks. Credit: AAP

After their meeting, Wong and Wang were due to take part in a ceremony and dinner to mark the anniversary.

In a joint statement released after the meeting, the two foreign ministers said they agreed to further talks on trade, climate change and defence. They would also support high-level delegations of business executives and senior officials.

“50 years on from the establishment of diplomatic ties, the two sides reiterated the importance of a stable, constructive relationship to both sides, the region and the world,” the statement said.

Commenting before the meeting to discuss Chinese tariffs on Australian goods such as barley, beef and wine, Wong said Australia believed it was “in the interest of both countries for the trade impediments to be removed”.

The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age reported on Tuesday that Australian lobster farmers and winemakers are already attracting renewed interest from Chinese importers and distributors, a promising sign the sanctions could soon be lifted.

With Eryk Bagshaw

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