Xi has been feted in Australia, both during the G20 summit in Brisbane and on trips to Sydney, Hobart and Canberra, and he noted that since his first visit in 1988 relations had been ‘moving forward with a strong momentum’.
‘My personal experience has given me the impression that earth-shaking changes have taken place in this relationship,’ he added at the Australia-China State and Provincial Leaders Forum in Canberra.
‘What we have achieved is unimaginable back over two decades ago,’ he said through a translator, adding that he and Abbott had drawn a ‘new footprint’ for relations during his three-day state visit following two days of G20 talks in Brisbane.
‘We have decided to elevate this relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership. This symbolises that our relations will embrace broader prospects,’ Xi said. During the visit Xi and Abbott sealed a bumper free trade deal that abolishes tariffs in the lucrative resources and agricultural sectors as Canberra confronts a painful downturn in mining.
They also committed to greater Antarctic cooperation, with Abbott gushing in his praise of the leader of a nation that is Australia’s top trading partner.
‘I have personally felt very privileged these last few days to have spent so much time with President Xi, and to have felt so much warmth personally,’ he said.
‘These have been some of the most remarkable days of my life. ‘The transition of China from the
third world to the first world... is a transformation unparalleled in human history. It is the greatest human advance of all time. And we here in Australia are so lucky to have benefited from that rise.’
Xi leaves Australia l ater Wednesday for New Zealand, where trade and investment will again be the theme.
‘My personal experience has given me the impression that earth-shaking changes have taken place in this relationship,’ he added at the Australia-China State and Provincial Leaders Forum in Canberra.
‘What we have achieved is unimaginable back over two decades ago,’ he said through a translator, adding that he and Abbott had drawn a ‘new footprint’ for relations during his three-day state visit following two days of G20 talks in Brisbane.
‘We have decided to elevate this relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership. This symbolises that our relations will embrace broader prospects,’ Xi said. During the visit Xi and Abbott sealed a bumper free trade deal that abolishes tariffs in the lucrative resources and agricultural sectors as Canberra confronts a painful downturn in mining.
They also committed to greater Antarctic cooperation, with Abbott gushing in his praise of the leader of a nation that is Australia’s top trading partner.
‘I have personally felt very privileged these last few days to have spent so much time with President Xi, and to have felt so much warmth personally,’ he said.
‘These have been some of the most remarkable days of my life. ‘The transition of China from the
third world to the first world... is a transformation unparalleled in human history. It is the greatest human advance of all time. And we here in Australia are so lucky to have benefited from that rise.’
Xi leaves Australia l ater Wednesday for New Zealand, where trade and investment will again be the theme.