Trump administration at the ‘end of its tether' in dealing with Albanese
'I think the Trump administration has come to the end of its tether with dealing with Prime Minister Albanese,' Mr Jennings told Sky News host Peta Credlin.
'They are puzzled at the string of insults directed towards the president, and they're offended by the fact that Albanese can't get on the phone or find a flight to get to Washington, DC.
'They are returning a bit of fire with fire.'
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Perth Now
26 minutes ago
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Business and security on the agenda for Albanese, Xi talks
Political differences will bump up against economic opportunities as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese meets his Chinese counterparts in the imposing Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Tuesday's bilateral meetings with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and Communist Party Chairman Zhao Leji - the three highest-ranking members of China's ruling committee - mark the centrepiece of Mr Albanese's six-day tour of the Middle Kingdom. President Xi is top dog in China, and the optics of Mr Albanese's rendezvous with one of the world's most influential leaders will be powerful. But it's his meeting with Premier Li, notionally the Head of Government in China, that will deliver any tangible agreements from the trip if they occur. The meetings come as the Chinese-Australian free trade agreement passes its 10th anniversary. Co-operation between the two nations has increased following a falling out during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mr Albanese will emphasise the potential for further developing business links at a CEO roundtable hosted by the Business Council of Australia on Tuesday evening. Greater engagement between China and Australia has delivered practical benefits to both nations, building understanding between governments and businesses. 'It enables us to express our differences and to manage them, without our relationship being defined by them,' he will say. 'This is about building stronger ties where our national interests are aligned.' Dialogue will help the countries work together to address the structural imbalances of global steel supply, maximise the economic opportunities of the global shift to net zero, and provide certainty and confidence for businesses to invest, he will say. But fundamental political differences limit the extent of economic co-operation. Mr Albanese is likely to raise Australian concerns over increased Chinese militarism, including Chinese naval exercises off Australian waters, and the detention of Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun. Beijing's dissatisfaction over Australia's plan to tear up a Chinese-owned company's lease of Darwin Port is also likely to be broached. An article by a Chinese state media influencer suggested Beijing could restrict Australian imports as retaliation, risking financial blow back for Australian companies. Business Council of Australia chief executive Bran Black says the two nations' challenges and opportunities would be best met with dialogue. 'And that's exactly what this roundtable is about,' he will say at the event. 'Today's agenda points to the breadth of that shared opportunity: education, smarter agriculture, the green economy and low-carbon transformation. 'But that opportunity is underpinned by the personal connections that we, collectively and personally, have the privilege to establish, re-establish, confirm and enhance today.' Expanding the free trade agreement further into the services and investment sectors will be high on the agenda of the roundtable, as will exploring co-operation in education, smart agriculture, health and aged care. Green energy and low-carbon steel will once again be a hot topic after it formed the focus of a roundtable between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers in Shanghai.
Perth Now
26 minutes ago
- Perth Now
What Albo will say to Xi Jinping
The big moment of Anthony Albanese's state visit to China is upon him — a face-to-face with Xi Jinping. The Prime Minister has had a cruisy two days being wooed by Chinese officials and business leaders in the glitzy beauty of central Shanghai. He and his hosts have been keen to boast the boons of deep bilateral trade and tourism ties, emerging from meetings starry-eyed about the future of an economic partnership despite the spectre of an increasingly militaristic regional rivalry. But when Mr Albanese meets the Chinese President on Tuesday, there will be no escaping the touchy topics. Anthony Albanese with Australian businessman Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest at an event in Shanghai on Monday. NewsWire / Joseph Olbrycht-Palmer Credit: News Corp Australia The Chinese have already indicated they will raise the Port of Darwin, which is leased to Chinese logistics giant Landbridge Holdings. A former state media propagandist-turned influencer warned of 'countermeasures' if the Albanese government follows through with its election vow to break the 99-year lease. But speaking to reporters on Monday, Mr Albanese doubled down on the promise, saying his government has 'a very clear position' and that Mr Xi 'is very clear and knowledgeable of that'. 'We have a very clear position that we want the port to go into Australian ownership,' he said before departing for Beijing. 'We've been clear about it, we've been orderly about it, and we will go through that process.' Mr Albanese has been careful not to pre-empt how his meeting with the world's second-most powerful leader will go. 'I'll treat him with the respect that I would any leader of another country and not foreshadow everything today,' he said in his Monday remarks. But he did give some hints on what touchy topics he might have of his own, such as the detention of detention of Australian writer and pro-democracy activist Yang Hengiun. Mr Yang was given a suspended death sentence last year after spending five years behind bars on espionage charges – charges he denies. 'We always raise issues of Australian citizens, and if you look at my record, it's not too bad,' Mr Albanese boasted when asked about Mr Yang. 'I'll put my record there of successfully advocating for Australian citizens, some of which has been criticised when we've been successful.' Mr Albanese was flanked by Socceroos great turned Shanghai Port FC coach Kevin Muscat earlier in the China visit. NewsWire / Joseph Olbrycht-Palmer Credit: News Corp Australia Human rights more broadly could also be on the agenda. Aside from detaining Australians on trumped-up charges, Canberra has protested China's enslavement of Uighur Muslims in its Xinjiang province and demanded it implement recommendations made in a UN report. Speaking on Chinese soil in the presence of Chinese officials, Mr Albanese simply repeated his China mantra, saying his government 'will co-operate wherever we can' and 'disagree where we must'. 'We disagree where we must and we put forward our position clearly where we have disagreements,' he said. He flatly refused to say if he would mention the Chinese warships that carried out live-fire drills as they circumnavigated Australia earlier this year. Chinese warships circumnavigated Australia earlier this year. Australian Defence Force Credit: Supplied He also would not comment on whether he would bring up China's support for Russia in its years-long war on Ukraine. There will be space for positives, though, with Mr Albanese eager to quell concerns of a future conflict through trade – an approach Europe took with Russia under Vladimir Putin. He said it was 'important to recognise … that the economic relationship is obviously based on upon a stable and secure region'. 'We've seen the disruption that occurs when there is conflict in the world,' Mr Albanese said. 'That's why we need to make sure that we do everything we can to promote peace and security in the region.' He added building people-to-people ties was key to keeping the peace. It is a stark contrast to warnings from Washington that China could up-end regional peace by invading Taiwan as early as 2027.
Perth Now
42 minutes ago
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Trump unleashes on Putin while giving Ukraine new weapons
US President Donald Trump has threatened Russia with severe tariffs and agreed to an arms deal to funnel sophisticated weaponry into Kyiv in an attempt to pressure Russia to end its war in Ukraine. Mr Trump met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office, where he made very clear he is losing his patience with Russian President Vladimir Putin who has delayed ceasefire agreements for months. 'We are very, very unhappy with (Russia), and we're going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days,' Mr Trump said. 'I'm disappointed in Putin because I thought we would have had a deal two months ago, but it doesn't seem to get there. 'So based on that, we're going to be doing secondary tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days. It's very simple. And they'll be at 100 per cent. And that's the way it is.' If you'd like to view this content, please adjust your . To find out more about how we use cookies, please see our Cookie Guide. The US President added that he has 'wonderful conversations' with Mr Putin over the phone, only to find out shortly after that more missiles have struck Ukraine. 'Every night, people are dying... A lot of Russian soldiers are dying, by the way — and a lot of Ukrainian soldiers, too.' 'I don't want to say he's an assassin but he's a tough guy,' Mr Trump added, noting that several of his predecessors had also become disillusioned with Putin. The decision by Mr Trump to send arms to Ukraine represented a turning point for the US President, who has spent the early months of his term trying to coax Mr Putin into a ceasefire agreement, only to be turned down every time. Under the deal, Mr Trump said the United States will supply weapons that will be paid for by NATO countries. Mr Rutte said massive numbers of weapons would be sent, including missiles, as part of a first wave of equipment. Mr Trump said the 'top of the line' equipment, including Patriot missile systems and batteries, would be arriving very soon. If you'd like to view this content, please adjust your . To find out more about how we use cookies, please see our Cookie Guide. 'We're going to have some come very soon, within days ... a couple of the countries that have Patriots are going to swap over and will replace the Patriots with the ones they have,' he said. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has made regular appeals to the US and its NATO military alliance allies for weapons to help defend itself in the grinding war. 'If I was Vladimir Putin today, and you're speaking about what you are planning to do in 50 days ... I would reconsider whether I should not take negotiations about Ukraine more seriously,' Mr Rutte said. A White House official said Mr Trump was referring to 100 per cent tariffs on Russian goods as well as secondary sanctions on other countries that buy its exports. Still, Mr Trump's announcement of a 50-day grace period was greeted with relief by investors in Russia, where the rouble recovered from earlier losses and stock markets rose. 'Trump performed below market expectations. He gave 50 days during which the Russian leadership can come up with something and extend the negotiation track. Moreover, Trump likes to postpone and extend such deadlines,' said analyst Artyom Nikolayev from Invest Era, a financial information firm. Mr Trump has been reluctant to punish Russia, but he came away from a recent phone call with Mr Putin disappointed that the Russian leader appeared prepared to continue the war. Mr Rutte said Germany, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands and Canada all want to be a part of rearming Ukraine. 'They all want to be part of this. And this is only the first wave. There will be more. So what we will do is work through the NATO systems to make sure that we know what Ukrainians need to make packages,' he said. Mr Trump's promise that NATO would pay for the weapons satisfies his demand that the US not continue bankrolling the war and puts the financial burden on US allies in Europe. - With Reuters
