China's message for Albanese after election win
China has congratulated Anthony Albanese on Labor's decisive election win, signalling it hopes for closer ties with Australia amid a trade war with the United States. 'China stands ready to work with the new Australian government led by Prime Minister Albanese and, under the fundamental guidance provided by the important common understandings between the leaders of the two countries, continue advancing a more mature, stable, and productive comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Australia,' China's foreign ministry said in a statement.
China's ministry added that this would 'benefit both nations and peoples' and contribute to 'peace and stability in the region and beyond.' China is Australia's largest trading partner, and following the election, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government's top priority would be protecting Australia from the fallout of the US-China tariff war. 'The immediate focus is on global economic uncertainty, US and China, and what it means for us,' Mr Chalmers said.
'What's happening, particularly between the US and China, does cast a dark shadow over the global economy. We need to have the ability, and we will have the ability, to manage that uncertainty.' Under the former Morrison government, diplomatic ties with China deteriorated sharply after Australia called for an international investigation into the origins of Covid-19, amid suspicions it leaked from a Wuhan laboratory. In retaliation, Beijing imposed a range of trade bans on Australian goods, and issued a list of 14 grievances accusing Australia of racism and aligning with a so-called US-led 'anti-China' campaign.
Since the change of government in 2022, Australia–China relations have steadily improved, with many of China's trade restrictions on Australian goods now lifted. China is expected to maintain that momentum and seek more Australian imports due to the now prohibitive costs of American imports due to tariffs. Despite the recent thaw in relations, military tensions remain between the two nations, with the Albanese government publicly criticizing China in February over a live-fire military exercise in the Tasman Sea.
The drills were held in international waters, beneath a busy flight corridor between Australia and New Zealand, forcing 49 commercial aircraft to change course. While the activity did not breach international law, Mr Albanese and Defense Minister Richard Marles said China failed to provide adequate notice. 'They [China] did so with very little notice and that was the issue that was very disconcerting for the airlines involved,' Mr Marles said.
Chinese defense ministry spokesperson Wu Qian hit back and accused Australia of 'hyping up' the live firing exercises. 'China's actions are in full compliance with international law and international practices and will not affect aviation flight safety,' Ms Wu said in a statement. 'Australia, knowing this well, made unreasonable accusations against China and deliberately hyped it up. We are deeply surprised and strongly dissatisfied with this.' At the time, Anne-Marie Brady, a Mandarin-speaking professor at the University of Canterbury who specializes in Chinese domestic and foreign policy, told Daily Mail Australia that the drills were a warning of China's future intentions.
'The live fire exercises in the Tasman are a shot across the bow to Australia and New Zealand of China's sea power and desire to normalize a permanent presence in the South West Pacific,' Ms Brady said. 'There has been a steady buildup of People's Liberation Army naval capacity across the South West Pacific.' Donald Rothwell, Professor of International Law at the Australian National University, said China could have easily conducted the exercises in its own waters.
But he warned that the reason China chose this location was 'to project its military force far beyond its own shores'. 'These types of activities are also important intelligence gathering exercises,' he said. 'Each Chinese Navy visit will give it more experience in waters where it does not frequently sail, while also gauging how Australia and New Zealand respond.' Mr Albanese, Australia's first prime minister to win a second consecutive term in two decades, promised in remarks on Sunday that he would run a disciplined and orderly government, stressing that Australians had voted for unity.
'We will be a disciplined, orderly government in our second term, just like we have been in our first,' Mr Albanese told reporters. 'The Australian people voted for unity rather than division,' Mr Albanese added in brief public comments. Polls had shown Labor trailing the opposition conservative coalition for nine months until March, amid widespread angst about the government's handling of inflation and consequent rising interest rates and a sharp decline in the value of the Australian dollar.
But the polls flipped when the Liberals unveiled a proposal to slash the federal workforce, which was compared to the Trump administration's moves to cut back government agencies. A proposal to force federal workers back to the office five days a week was also criticized as unfair to women. Trump's April 2 tariff announcement added to voters' unease as it sent shockwaves through global markets and raised concerns about the impact on superannuation funds.
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