Key Points
- Foreign Minister Penny Wong has met with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Canberra.
- Wong raised human rights concerns and the case of an Australian facing the death penalty in China.
- They also discussed Chinese tariffs on a number of Australian products.
Trade issues, an Australian sentenced to death in China and other human rights concerns were the main topics of Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s meeting with her Chinese counterpart.
“China will always be China, Australia will always be Australia,” Wong told media following talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Canberra on Wednesday.
“However, we want to continue to engage, to cooperate where we can and disagree where we must, and to manage these differences wisely.”
Tariffs and market volatility
Chinese tariffs were one item high on Wong’s agenda.
Although China pulled back some of the restrictions on Australian products first enforced between 2020 and 2021, tariffs on Australian beef and lobster remain in place.
“I welcomed the progress towards removing trade impediments and reiterated our desire for the removal of remaining impediments on beef and lobster,” she said.
However, there was no announcement regarding a further winding back of tariffs.
Wong said they had also discussed volatility in nickel markets, adding that “predictability in business and trade is in all our economic interests”.
Yang’s death sentence
Wong said she told Yi that Australians were shocked at the sentence imposed on pro-democracy writer Yang Hengjun by a Chinese court.
Having spent five years behind bars in China, Yang was found guilty of espionage in February.
He was given , meaning his sentence would become a sentence of life imprisonment after two years if he does not commit any serious crimes during that period.
“I made clear to him the Australian government will continue to advocate on Dr Yang’s behalf,” Wong said.
“I also raised our concerns about other Australian death penalty cases. As you know, Australia opposes the death penalty in all circumstances for all peoples.”
Yang Hengjun was arrested in August 2019 on suspicion of espionage. Source: Getty / David Gray
Concerns about human rights in China
Wong said she also broached the subject of human rights in China.
“I raised Australia’s concerns about human rights, including in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong.”
A Human Rights Watch report released in February warned of a link between the global car industry and forced labour in the Chinese region of Xinjiang.
and Tibetan independence have been even longer-running issues.
European Union to express “grave concerns” over the far-reaching provisions.
