Chinese Premier Promises New Pandas To Australia Amid Trade Talks

Chinese Premier Li Qiang has promised Australia a new pair of giant pandas, urging the nation to set aside its differences with Beijing. 

This marks the first visit by China’s second-highest-ranking leader in seven years. 

Arriving in Adelaide on Saturday, Li’s visit focused on reviving diplomatic ties and boosting trade. 

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The South Australian capital has been pivotal in the wine trade, especially since China lifted tariffs that had previously crippled an AU$1.2 billion industry.

Mr Li said China would continue the collaboration after the current pandas, Wang Wang and Fu Ni, returned to China in November. 

“China will soon provide another pair of pandas that are equally beautiful, lively, cute, and younger,” Mr Li said.

The visit underscores a broader effort to reset relations that had soured over legislation banning covert foreign interference and Australia’s exclusion of Huawei from its 5G network. 

Tensions further escalated when Australia called for an independent investigation into the origins of COVID-19, prompting China to impose trade bans on Australia.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong highlighted the significance of Mr Li’s visit, attributing it to two years of deliberate diplomacy. 

“We will cooperate where we can, we will disagree where we must and we will engage in our national interest,” she said.

Li’s trip also included a visit to Canberra for discussions with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. 

Topics on the agenda included recent military clashes in the South China Sea and the fate of Australian citizens detained in China.

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