SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Wednesday his government’s screening of foreign investment was not country-specific, after Chinese Premier Li Qiang raised “problems” faced by Chinese companies seeking access to Australia.
On the fifth day of a China visit where the Australian leader is balancing trade and security, Albanese visited the Great Wall to draw a comparison with former prime minister Gough Whitlam who walked the wall in 1971, opening dialogue with communist China before Australia’s ally the United States had done so.
“Foreign investment is viewed not on the basis of any one country but on the basis of an objective assessment of our national interest,” he told reporters during the visit on Wednesday.
At a roundtable of Chinese and Australian company executives on Tuesday evening, Li had said he hoped Australia would “solve the problems encountered by enterprises in terms of market access and investment review”, a readout of the meeting by Chinese state media outlet Xinhua showed.
Australia has blocked some Chinese investments in critical minerals, and company executives have told Reuters that security screening of renewable energy and key infrastructure has also stepped up.
Australia supplies around half of the world’s lithium as well as other minerals including rare earths used in batteries for electric cars and defence, and is seeking to boost trade with the U.S. amid a global push to diversify supply chains away from dominant producer China.
Albanese said on Wednesday that it was in Australia’s interest to have a positive relationship with China and not be defined by differences.
To underline the point, Albanese said he was following in the footsteps of the Labor leader Whitlam, who made “a decision that took courage” to visit and recognise the People’s Republic of China in a changing world.
“It’s important that we build stability and security in our world, and part of that has to be positive engagement,” he added.
(Reporting by Kirsty Needham; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
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