Shangri-La Dialogue: Australia-China defence ministers meet as bilateral tensions show signs of easing
- Australian defence minister Richard Marles and his Chinese counterpart General Li Shangfu met on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue summit
- Their meeting was one of a number of renewed interactions between the two countries amid concerns over military secrecy, sanctions and a lingering rift
Australian defence minister Richard Marles met his Chinese counterpart General Li Shangfu for the first time since Li’s appointment this year.
Meeting on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue defence summit in Singapore late on Saturday, the pair discussed the importance of resumed ministerial talks as part of the effort to stabilise bilateral relations.
The two countries have been at loggerheads since 2020 after Australia’s previous government, under Prime Minister Scott Morrison, called for an independent investigation into the source of coronavirus, raising China’s ire over being blamed as the source for the pandemic.
The meeting is one of a growing list of renewed interactions between senior ministers of the two countries since the new Albanese government took office last May.
Earlier this month, Australian trade minister Don Farrell visited Beijing where he met his counterpart, commerce minister Wang Wentao.
Like Farrell and Wang, Marles and Li also discussed the progress of China’s lifting of restrictions on exports from Australia.
