Australia & China Foreign Ministers To Meet For First Time Since 2019

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong will meet with China Foreign Minister Wang Yi later today, on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Bali. This will be the first time the foreign ministers of the two-countries have met since September 2019.

• Australia's Wong has stated it is in China and Australia's best interests for the relationship to stabilize, while China recently indicated that the new Labor government in Australia has opened a window of opportunity for relations to improve.
• From the Australian side, sanctions against industries and trade tariffs (on wine and barely etc) will be a focus point. While from China's standpoint, blocking of China investment into certain Australian industries and cancelation of visas for China academics could be on the agenda according to Australian newswires.
• The Ukraine conflict is also likely to be discussed, along with security in the Pacific islands. This comes after the Solomon Islands stated it would like a permanent China police presence in Honiara, the capital of the country.