Anthony Albanese says Australia will enter into any talks with China without preconditions.Credit:Dean Sewell
“That is not in Australia’s interest in terms of our jobs and the economy,but it’s also not in China’s interest.
“We’ll continue to put our case that these sanctions are not justified,that they need to be removed.
“But we will enter any discussions that take place without any preconditions. Dialogue is a good thing if it occurs. If not,well,we’ll be having of course some multilateral participation in the forums that will take place over the next nine days.”
“[Sanctions are] not in Australia’s interest in terms of our jobs and the economy,but it’s also not in China’s interest.”
Anthony Albanese
Albanese said the summits were happening in a context of “strategic competition” and rising tension in the region,saying Australia wanted an Indo-Pacific that was peaceful,stable and secure.
“What I’ve said about China is that we want to co-operate where we can,but we will stand up for Australian values where we must,” he said.