Sino-Australian cooperation in natural resources and a dialogue
with students dominated the second day's agenda of Chinese Premier
Wen
Jiabao's visit to Australia.
In Perth, Wen attended a briefing on Australian natural resources,
visited an iron foundry, toured a hydrocarbon research center,
exchanged views with Chinese and Australian college students and
met with West Australia Tate Premier Alan Carpenter.
The event-packed day ended in Canberra, where his Australian
counterpart John Howard hosted a red-carpet, 19-gun salute welcome
ceremony.
Wen and Howard are expected to hold official talks, at the
culmination of his tour, during which the Chinese and Australian
governments and enterprises will ink a number of cooperative
documents which are likely to include an agreement on the peaceful
use of nuclear energy.
In his concluding speech made at the briefing chaired by Australian
Industry, Tourism and Resources Minister, Ian Macfarland, Wen said
Australia boasted abundant natural resources while China remained a
stable and growing market.
"The bilateral cooperation in mineral resources is carried out in
line with equality and mutual benefit and the establishment of
long-term, stable and healthy cooperative ties serves the interests
of both countries," he said.
Resources trading which accounts for 60 percent of Sino-Australian
dual-track trade hit US$27.3 billion in 2005. In iron ore alone
China imported 112 million tons worth US$6 billion in 2005. The two
countries also trade in coal, copper and nickel.
He urged the two sides to seize the opportunities and extend the
cooperation from current commodity trading to upstream exploration
and collaboration in new, renewable and clean energies and
production safety.
In HIsmelt Kwinana Joint Venture Iron Making Facility, Wen climbed
atop a tower to watch the smelting of the iron ore and asked
detailed questions on the new technology which has a low
environmental impact.
China had engaged in building up a resource-efficient and
environmentally-friendly society, he told the Australians, adding
that there was room for the two sides to enhance cooperation in
this regard.
A cheerful moment came when he lit "burning ice" -- actually
solidified natural gas--and chatted with young college students
from China and Australia during his visit to Curtin University of
Technology.
Despite differences in social systems, histories and cultural
backgrounds, Chinese and Australian peoples both cherished peace
and love life, he said. Thanks to the diversity, tolerance and
openness of the cultures of both, the two countries could learn
from each other and coexist harmoniously.
"We talked about iron ore and natural gas the whole morning," he
told his audience. "Economic cooperation is important because it
brings benefits to the two peoples. In the long run, the contacts
among the young people and the exchanges in areas of education are
most important," he added. Wen invited 100 Australian college
students to visit China each year for the next two years.
China now has around 80,000 students studying in Australia.
(Xinhua News Agency April 3, 2006)