SYDNEY/BEIJING, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Sunday he will travel to China from Nov. 4 to 7 to meet with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in a bid to stabilise relations with the country’s biggest trading partner.
Patching up relations with China, which had deteriorated over several years due to disputes over telecoms firm Huawei, espionage and COVID, has been a top priority for Albanese since he took office in 2022.
Speaking in Canberra, Albanese said Australia late on Saturday had reached a deal with China to move forward to solve its World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute over wine, potentially clearing the way for the resumption of imports worth $800 million a year before the duties were imposed in 2021.
The ministry added that China and Australia held “friendly consultations” on WTO disputes of mutual concern over various items, and was willing to “jointly promote the stable and healthy development of bilateral economic and trade relations.”
The announcements are the latest in a diplomatic thaw that has already seen China lift restrictions on imports of Australian coal, timber and barley, which Beijing had targeted after Canberra called for an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19.
The duties of up to 218% on most Australian wines were imposed in March 2021, causing trade to collapse in what had been the most valuable export market for the country’s winemakers.
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