Australian Prime Minister Open to Dialogue With Chinese Leaders

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese holds a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on Oct. 18, 2022. Martin Ollman/Getty Images

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said that he would be open to a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in the next nine days as leaders from around the world gather for a range of international summits in Asia, including the B20, G20, APEC, ASEAN-Australia, and East Asia Summit.

Speaking at a press conference in Canberra on Nov. 9, the prime minister said that he had always believed that dialogue between the countries was a good thing.

“I’ve made it very clear that dialogue is a good thing,” Albanese said. “And so if a meeting is arranged with Xi, then that would be a positive thing.”

However, the Prime Minister said his trip was not on the program and nothing had been finalised.

“It will be an extensive nine days and a very busy nine days,” Albanese said. “We’re still finalising the program.”

Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese attends a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (not in picture), at the Akasaka Palace state guest house in Tokyo, Japan, on May 24, 2022. Pool/Getty Images

The shadow minister for Countering Foreign Interference, Liberal Senator James Paterson was supportive of a meeting.

“It’s part of normal healthy bilateral relations, even when countries have differences that we meet and we have an opportunity to discuss and exchange views,” he said.

However, he refused to be drawn on whether the prime minister should address the recent allegations Beijing had been looking to recruit ex-defence force personnel to train the People’s Liberation Army.

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The comments from the prime minister come as Defence Minister Richard Marles announced a joint task force between the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation to counter foreign interference.

“The task force that I’ve described is investigating a number of cases,” Marles said on Nov. 9. “What we are focused on right now is making sure that we do examine the policies and the procedures that are currently in place in respect of our former Defence personnel to make sure they are adequate.”

The latest move comes after a former U.S. Marine fighter pilot and flight instructor—who had been working in China—was arrested in Australia following a report from the BBC alleging that Beijing had been headhunting military personnel for training.

Marles, who is also deputy prime minister,  has launched a review into ex-members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) after the report.

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“It’s no secret that Defence activities, people, and assets are targets for Foreign Intelligence Services,” Marles said.

“But let me be clear: Australians who work or have worked for the government in any capacity, particularly our ADF, who come into possession of the nation’s secrets, have an obligation to maintain those secrets beyond their employment with, or their engagement with, the Commonwealth.

“This is an enduring obligation, and to reveal any of those secrets is a crime.”