Anthony Albanese will meet with Chinese Premier Li Qiang for one-on-one talks as Australia aims to repair economic ties with its biggest trading partner.
The pair will meet on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Jakarta on Thursday during the annual gathering of world leaders.
The bilateral talks follows China lifting tariffs on Australian barley, with the softening of trade impediments giving hopeful signs restrictions on other products such as wine and lobsters will follow.
Mr Albanese will meet with China’s second-in-command after President Xi Jinping opted not to attend the summit in Indonesia.
The prime minister had met with Mr Xi at the G20 summit last year, and since then, 15 meetings have taken place between Australian ministers and Chinese counterparts.
On Wednesday at the ASEAN summit, Mr Albanese foreshadowed a meeting with Mr Li was on the cards at the summit in Indonesia.
“My position on the relationship with China remains a consistent one, which is we’ll co-operate where we can or disagree where we must,” he said.
“I’m sure that over the next period both here and at the G20, Premier Li will be present, we’ll certainly be in the same room.”
The talks with Mr Li coincide with the resumption of Australia-China high-level dialogues in Beijing, the first time such discussions have taken place since 2020.
Trade impediments imposed by China had resulted in a more than $20 billion reduction in the value of exports to the Asian nation.
It comes as Trade Minister Don Farrell proposed suspending Australia’s wine complaint against China in exchange for a review on punitive tariffs, but has yet to hear back.
While in Jakarta, Mr Albanese will also hold bilateral talks with Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who is hosting the ASEAN and East Asia Summits.
Both leaders will also take part in the ASEAN-Australia Summit and will co-chair the event.
The East Asia Summit will involve leaders from all 10 ASEAN nations, along with the US, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and India.
Mr Albanese will also be looking to boost trade ties with Southeast Asian nations following the release of a new economic strategy for the region to 2040 on Wednesday.
The strategy, which had 75 recommendations, called for greater investment in the region, with Southeast Asia set to be the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2040.
The prime minister said the opportunity for trade within the area was enormous.
“This strategy makes very clear that Australia’s economic future is right here in Southeast Asia,” he told a business event in Jakarta.
“My government will take some time to properly consider the strategies … one area we’re particularly interested in is Southeast Asia’s energy security and clean energy transition.”
The prime minister will then fly out of Indonesia on Thursday for the Philippines, ahead of bilateral talks with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, before then flying to India for the G20 summit.
