China Visit Announced by Western Australian Premier
Mr. Cook will meet with Chinese authorities to raise the profile of WA.
Western Australian Premier Roger Cook will embark on his first trip to China as leader of the state in late November.
He is the latest Australian Labor leader to visit the region, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese travelling to Beijing to meet Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping from Nov. 4. to 7.
While in China, Mr. Cook will join “high-level meetings” with Chinese authorities, stakeholders, and industry leaders in both Sichuan and Shanghai.
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Former Premier Mark McGowan met with Chinese authorities in April 2023, while South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas went to Beijing in September.
WA’s Biggest Trading Partner
China is the largest trading partner of Western Australia, absorbing 55 percent of exports in the 2023 financial year.
The premier hopes to promote “mutually beneficial” outcomes between the state and China while exploring new investment and trade opportunities.
During the four-day mission from Nov. 20 to 24, the premier will visit the Sichuan Province in the country’s southwest. This province is home to 83 million people and is seen as a gateway to the greater southwest region.
The Western Australian (WA) government will promote tourism, international education, and aviation during the trip.
In Shanghai, Mr. Cook will meet with resources and aviation industry leaders and investors from the Chinese energy sector. Direct flights between China and Australia are also reportedly on the agenda.
The premier will also “undertake high-level meetings with key Chinese officials to help raise the profile of WA in China and to “deepen the bilateral relationship.”
In China, the Chinese Communist Party (CC
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