Opening Remarks - Bilateral meeting with Premier of the People's Republic of China

HIS EXCELLENCY MR LI QIANG, PREMIER OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA: Nice to meet you, Mr. Prime Minister in here in Jakarta. Indeed it's my pleasure to have this opportunity. Last November, you met with President Xi Jinping, also in Indonesia but in Bali. A series of important common understandings were reached. Since then, thanks to the concerted efforts of both sides, the China-Australia relationship has continued to show a positive momentum of improvement which is welcomed by all sectors of both countries and the international community. Both China and Australia are important countries in the Asia Pacific. Our two countries interactions go back over half a century. A review of our past interactions shows that when our relations are good and sound, both people's benefit and when things are not going so well, both sides lose from it. A sound and steady China-Australia relationship serves the fundamental interest and common aspirations of both peoples. Mr. Prime Minister, you on many occasions stressed the importance of China-Australia relations and said Australia is ready to carry out co-operation with China. We commend such statements. I welcome you, Mr. Prime Minister, to visit China within the year and hope to work with you to further improve and grow the bilateral relations and bring greater benefits to the two peoples. I hope to have a in depth discussion today with you on issues of mutual interest.

ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you very much, Premier Li and I'm very pleased to meet with you today on the margins of the East Asia Summit. Our focus at the summit is on shaping an open, secure and prosperous region. Stable and constructive ties between countries in our region are key to this. So it's fitting for us to meet here to take our important relationship forward. As you say, we have celebrated 50 years of recognition between our two countries. And I'm encouraged by the progress that we have made since I met President Xi in Bali. I agree with you that both sides stand to benefit from improving our relations. Our relationship has certainly delivered great benefits to the people of both of our nations. Our deep economic ties, for example, have over decades allowed both countries to develop and grow, lifting the living standards of people in China, but also in Australia. The progress we've made in resuming unimpeded trade is good for both countries. And we want to see that progress continue. Our people-to-people links have enriched our cultural ties and built understanding. Today is an opportunity to discuss a range of bilateral and regional issues from our consular interests and economic matters to geostrategic issues, with a view to advancing stability and managing competition peacefully. Our views will not always align. We remain committed to our values and interests. But we understand that dialogue is absolutely critical. A stable and constructive relationship where we can realise the potential of our comprehensive strategic partnership is an interest that we both share. And Premier Li, I look forward to a productive discussion today and I thank you for the invitation to meet here this morning.