China willing to recalibrate ties with Australia: Wang Yi
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China expects Australia to adopt the principle of mutual respect and mutual benefit.
PHOTO: AFP
BEIJING (REUTERS) - China-Australia relations are facing both challenges and opportunities at the present, and China is willing to recalibrate ties in the spirit of mutual respect, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
"The Chinese side is willing to take the pulse (on ties), recalibrate, and set sail again," Mr Wang told Chinese media in the Guangxi region on Thursday (July 14), according to a foreign ministry statement on Friday.
But Australia must correct its understanding of China and not hype up differences, and refrain from joining in with others in trying to contain China, Mr Wang said.
Earlier on Thursday, China's commerce ministry said Beijing hopes that Australia can take pragmatic actions to create favourable conditions for the healthy and stable development of bilateral trade relations.
China expects Australia to adopt the principle of mutual respect and mutual benefit, ministry spokesman Shu Jueting told a news conference.
The comment came after Australia's foreign minister Penny Wong had earlier said the new government in Canberra was "willing to engage" with China, but added that it wanted the trade blockages that China has taken against Australia to be lifted.
China has imposed trade sanctions on Australian products ranging from coal to seafood and wine in response to policies and decisions including Australia's call for an investigation into the origins of Covid-19 and its 5G network ban on Chinese tech giant Huawei.
But the recent meeting between Ms Wong and Mr Wang signalled a first step towards stabilising the relationship, according to Ms Wong.
In 2021, bilateral trade value totalled US$231.2 billion (S$324.4 billion), up 35.1 per cent year-on-year, Chinese official data showed. China's imports from Australia grew 40.6 per cent to US$164.82 billion.
Due to supply concerns over Western-led sanctions on Russia, Chinese officials are proposing to end a near two-year ban on importing Australian coal, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday.
A Chinese news site sxcoal.com also said that talk of China ending its unofficial ban on imports of Australian coal had intensified in recent days.
