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While comparing the often difficult bilateral relationship to flying through "lightning", the Premier appeared to confirm there would be a breakthrough on access for chilled Australian beef into China during his visit.
"For the first time we will have chilled beef from a foreign country," Mr Li said on the same day as Brazilian beef exports to China were suspended.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has urged Australia not to take sides as happened during the cold war, warning strategic tensions in the region threatened prosperity, as he held out the prospect of greater access for Australian products and services to China.
On the first day of his official visit, the Premier issued a less than subtle reminder that Australia enjoyed a $US50 billion trade surplus with China last year and suggested this could be jeopardised by instability in the region.
"We don't want to see taking sides, as happened during the Cold War," he told a lunch hosted by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull at Parliament House on Thursday.
While comparing the often difficult bilateral relationship to flying through "lightning", the Premier appeared to confirm there would be a breakthrough on access for chilled Australian beef into China during his visit.
"For the first time we will have chilled beef from a foreign country," Mr Li said on the same day as Brazilian beef exports to China were suspended.
He also indicated recent changes to
cross border e-commerce laws, which were highly beneficial to Australian vitamin and infant formula makers, would not be rolled back as they sent a strong message on China's "openness" to trade.
"We will continue to import more Australian products so Chinese consumers have more options," he said. "We are standing together for free trade."
During the visit the two sides are expected to announce negotiations will begin for a new tax treaty, while there will also be agreements around innovation, agriculture, environment and energy cooperation.
Strategic ambitions
In mixing trade and foreign policy, the Premier sought to remind Australia its highly advantageous economic relationship with China could be threatened if Canberra sided more closely with the United States in opposing Beijing's strategic ambitions in the region.
He said China would pursue an "independent foreign policy" and hinted Australia should do likewise.
The Premier's warning about Australia "taking sides" follows comments by
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop last week where she said China could not be a leader in the region as it was not a democracy, while urging the US to play a greater role in the Asia Pacific.
Ms Bishop's comments were met with a curt rebuke from Beijing and she is not taking part in the Premier's visit, instead attending meetings in the US.
"In the future we would like our friends in Australia to discard ... ideological prejudice and take the right approach to China," China's deputy foreign minister Zheng Zeguang said on the eve of the visit.
While the Premier's speech was softly worded and punctuated with humour, it directly confronted Australian foreign policy in parts.
"We stand ready to work with Australia for peace in our region for maritime navigation freedom and the freedom of over-flight and we will continue to do that," he said.
This can be seen as a challenge to Australian claims that China's island building in the South China Sea threatened the free passage of ships and aircraft.
The Premier also reminded the audience Australia and China were "diverse cultures" and for co-operation to increase then Canberra must respect these differences.
"To take forward our co-operation that must be grounded in mutual respect," he said.
Hugh White, a professor of Strategic Studies at the Australian National University, said this could be viewed as a reminder the two countries had a different political systems and Canberra should not be lecturing Beijing on democracy.
"It was a gracious and nicely put together speech by the Premier but it contained some ribs of steel," he said.
'Rules-based international order'
The Premier opened the speech using an anecdote about the lightning he'd seen from the plane window as he flew into Australia on Wednesday.
"There was lightning but we kept flying. And that is the same for China/Australia relations. It will keep moving forward and forward and forward. We have firm belief in that," he said.
One foreign policy observer believed this was more than an "accidental anecdote", rather an acknowledgement from the Chinese side that the relationship has been difficult at times.
In his remarks to welcome the Premier, Mr Turnbull said he wanted to talk about "our friendship not test it" but said stability in the region was underpinned by the "rules-based international order".
"During this visit, Premier Li and I will discuss, as we have before, the importance of upholding and maintaining stability in our region," Mr Turnbull said.
"We believe China has much to contribute to global peace and prosperity, in this time of rapid change."
The remarks about a "rules based order" was a reference to China's ignoring of an UN tribunal which found last year its island-building activity in the South China Sea was illegal and its claims to this disputed territory were excessive.
The Premier's visit continues with engagements in Canberra and Sydney.
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