Albanese Tells China Lifting Trade Sanctions on Australian Coal Is in the ‘Interest’ of Both Nations

PM Anthony Albanese’s latest appeal asking China to lift the import curbs comes days after Australia’s Trade Minister Don Farell said that he could hold a meeting with Chinese Commerce Minister Weng Wentao in the coming weeks, as part of ongoing efforts to “reset” ties between the two nations.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has urged Beijing to lift import restrictions on coal and other imports from Canberra, saying that it is in the “interest” of both the nations to do so.

“Well, it's in China's interest to lift all of the sanctions against Australia. And it's in Australia's interest for that to happen as well,” Albanese said during an interview with Sky News on Sunday.

The import restrictions on Australian coal, barley and wine into China have been in place since 2020, after former Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an international probe into origins of the COVID pandemic.

Albanese, whose Labor Party came to power in May, has said that Australia wants good relations with all countries, including China. In fact, besides the foreign ministers’ meeting in Bali, the defense ministers of the two countries also met in Singapore in June, the first official contact between the top defense officials since 2020.

Albanese has described the recent official contacts between Beijing and Canberra as the “first step” in stabilizing bilateral relations, which were further strained after the unveiling of the Sino-Solomon security cooperation pact this April.

Australia and its ANZUS and Five Eyes Network (FVEY) treaty allies the US and New Zealand, the pre-eminent powers of the Pacific region since Second World War, have said that the pact between Beijing and Honiara could “fuel international tensions”.

However, Trade Minister Don Farell highlighted the importance of the Chinese market to Australian exporters last week, noting that trade between the two nations “continues to grow” in spite of some differences. In 2021, Australian exports to China reached $164.4 billion, an annual increase of 40 percent compared to the previous year, as per official data.

Meanwhile, Beijing has also expressed cautious optimism about a “reset” in ties between the two governments since the Albanese government was elected to power.

“The sound and steady development of China-Australia relations meets the common interests of the two countries and the two peoples. It is also good for safeguarding peace, stability, development and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a briefing last week.