Australian Foreign Minister visits China after years of frosty relations

The Australian government announced that Foreign Minister Penny Wong will travel to China on Tuesday, the first visit of its kind in four years, indicating further improvement in the relationship between Beijing and Canberra.

Wong’s visit marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, where she will meet with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said during his announcement of the visit that his country “seeks to establish stable relations with China, and we will cooperate where we can and disagree where we must.”
The last official visit by an Australian foreign minister to Beijing was in 2018, and since then relations have started to deteriorate.
The two countries disagree over political and human rights issues, particularly China’s extraterritorial activity, widespread human rights abuses in Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet, and the role of the United States in the Asia-Pacific region.
What angered communist leaders in Beijing was Australia’s decision to ban Huawei, impose sanctions on it, and prevent it from operating the fifth generation network in the country, in addition to Canberra’s continuous calls to investigate the origin of the Corona virus.
Beijing responded by imposing sanctions on a range of Australian goods and freezing high-level contacts, but warmth has begun to seep into the relationship since Albanese met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Bali in November.
And while Australia has indicated its desire to lift the sanctions that are still imposed on Huawei, experts doubt that there will be a significant improvement in relations.
Canberra has embarked on large-scale modernization of its military forces, including the purchase of nuclear-powered submarines and building capabilities that could inflict damage on a stronger enemy if necessary.
Although this is not explicitly mentioned, this military shift in Australia was mainly driven by the significant growth of China’s military capabilities and China’s assertive stance outside the borders under Xi’s rule.