Beijing says it ‘values relations with Australia’ ahead of meeting of Xi Jinping and Anthony Albanese

China says it ‘values its relations with Australia’, days before Xi Jinping is due to meet Anthony Albanese at the G20 in Bali.

Beijing’s most authoritative mouthpiece has said China was now ready to repair its fractured relationship with Australia, days before Anthony Albanese may meet Xi Jinping in Bali.

In what was the most positive Chinese state media editorial written about Australia in more than five years, the China Daily said Beijing wanted to improve the relationship, which has sunk to a 50-year low.

“China values its relations with Australia and regards Australia as an important partner for dialogue and co-operation,” said an editorial on Thursday.

“So long as the two countries meet each other halfway by working together towards the goal of mutual benefit and win-win co-operation, they will surely be able to rebuild mutual trust and pave the way for the sound and healthy development of Sino-Australian relations in the future.”

The Prime Minister departs on Friday morning for a 10-day “summit season” trip to Southeast Asia, starting with the East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh before flying to Bali for the G20 leaders’ meeting, and then to Bangkok for APEC talks.

Mr Albanese on Wednesday said it would be a “positive thing” to meet with the Chinese President at the G20 summit.

Senior government officials, however, refused to speculate on the likelihood of a bilateral meeting, or on expected talks with US President Joe Biden.

However, meetings have been locked in with the host countries’ leaders – Cambodia’s Hun Sen, Indonesia’s Joko Widodo and Thailand’s Prayut Chan-o-cha – and Mr Albanese will also have a bilateral meeting with new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Bali.

Mr Albanese said the G20 talks came at a critical time, amid a stark financial outlook, geo­strategic tensions and supply chain shocks.

“We must work together with our international partners to tackle inflation, technical skills shortages (and) climate change. That is how we can promote stability at home,” he said.

Mr Albanese will also attend the B20 summit, a meeting of global business leaders on the sidelines of the G20, with Jim Chalmers and a delegation of senior Australian business figures.

Beijing has been sending positive signals towards Canberra for months as it attempts to mend ties with Australia, by far its dominant source of iron ore and a crucial supplier of LNG and other strategic resources.

Earlier this week, Foreign Minister Penny Wong spoke with her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, for the third time in five months. Counsellor Wang said there had been “positive changes” between the two countries.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. Picture: DFAT / NCA NewsWire

At their previous conversation in September, Mr Xi’s envoy said China was now ready to meet Australia “halfway” in the biggest shift in Beijing’s diplomatic approach since its relationship with Canberra imploded in 2020.

On Tuesday, Liberal leader Peter Dutton, Canberra’s most prominent China hawk, met Chinese ambassador Xiao Qian.

While rhetoric coming out of Beijing and Canberra has moderated, the raft of disputes that led to the breakdown are unresolved. The Albanese government has also sought to lower expectations about the extent to which the relationship can improve.

Australians Cheng Lei and Yang Hengjun remain in prison in Beijing. Trade bans on Australian exports previously worth $20bn a year are still in place.

Beijing has not forgiven Canberra’s prominent role in global efforts to push back on China but the party state masthead, which is used to send messages to foreign governments, struck a pragmatic note, a departure from its strident approach with Australia over the past five years.