China's Xi Meets Australian PM Albanese in Beijing for Reset in Ties After Years of Tensions

President Xi Jinping of China met Australian Prime MinisterAustralian Prime MinisterAustralian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Beijing on Monday, in what marked a significant milestone in the relationship between the two nations, which had been strained for several years.

While Beijing remains Canberra’s largest trading partner, the rapport between the two countries deteriorated in 2020. This decline in relations was triggered by the actions of Australia’s former conservative government, which excluded the Chinese tech giant Huawei from participating in 5G contracts and also called for an investigation into the origins of COVID-19.

A furious Beijing then slapped punitive tariffs on a slew of Australian commodities including coal, barley and wine as the relationship descended into a deep freeze.