Chinese Premier Li Qiang has begun the first visit to Australia by a senior Beijing leader since 2017, signaling improved ties between the two nations at a time of escalating security tensions in the Asia-Pacific region.
Li arrived in the southern city of Adelaide on Saturday for the first leg of his trip. He toured the city’s zoo on Sunday morning to visit Australia’s only pair of pandas, Wang Wang and Fu Ni. As part of the trip, Li announced the much loved couple would be returning to China after 15 years, but promised to replace them with a new pair of the iconic animals.
In the afternoon, Li is expected to visit a South Australian winery, a symbolic stop for the premier following China’s lifting of punishing tariffs on local wines earlier this year.