Roger Cook is confident of maintaining strong ties with China — crucial to the State’s multi-billion-dollar iron ore industry — despite a mega-deal to turn WA into Australia’s nuclear submarine hub.
The Premier will on Sunday head to China on a trade mission designed to shore up a relationship that delivers WA billions of dollars a year in iron ore exports, and billions in royalties to the WA Government.
The visit comes days after WA was announced to the world as a key component of AUKUS — a deal struck between Australia, the US and the UK to counter a perceived threat from China in the Indo-Pacific.
Henderson, a shipping yard just south of Fremantle, is being turned into a $25 billion defence precinct capable of building naval ships and maintaining Australia’s future nuclear submarine fleet.
The $358b AUKUS deal will see Australia receive up to five nuclear submarines after 2030 — to be maintained at Henderson.
Mr Cook conceded this week Australia and WA’s relationship with the superpower was “complex”.
“As the Prime Minister has noted on a number of occasions, it’s a complex relationship,” Mr Cook said. “It’s built on strong trade relationships.
“But it’s also inevitable that with these complex relationships, you work with them where you can — you disagree where you must. But you continue to make sure that that you keep an open and engaged approach to the relationship.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese — accompanied by Mr Cook — announced at Henderson last Sunday a $12b Commonwealth down payment on turning Henderson into a nuclear submarine hub.
Mr Cook said he did not believe WA’s significant role in AUKUS threatened its lucrative export trade with China.
“We want the Chinese to buy our iron ore,” he said. “And so, from that perspective, we will continue to engage deeply.”
China is WA’s number one trading partner — making up more than half of the State’s goods exports in 2024-2025, driven largely by iron ore.
“That translates to thousands of local jobs for Western Australians,” Mr Cook said. “This mission is a great opportunity to highlight the trade ties we share with China and Japan and promote WA as a great place to invest and do business.”
The Premier will be accompanied by representatives of BHP, BP, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA, Chevron, Fortescue and Woodside on the China and Japan trade mission. WA Mines Minister David Michael and Federal Resources Minister Madeline King will also be in attendance.
Mr Cook will open the 7th Western Australian China Strategic dialogue, convening representatives from Chinese state-owned and private companies with substantial investments in WA.
The Premier will also meet with senior executives from Baowu Steel and Citic Steel before heading to Japan — WA’s second-largest trading partner with $24.9b worth of goods exported in 2024-25.
WA’s greatest export commodities to Japan are LNG and copper ore. While there, the Premier will meet with senior executives from Kawasaki Heavy Industries.
“I’ll travel to Tokyo and Osaka for the World Expo, where I’ll promote WA’s capacity and capability, especially in the fields of energy, technology and innovation,” he said.
https://thewest.com.au/politics/state-politics/roger-cook-backs-complex-relationship-between-australia-and-china-despite-aukus-deal-c-20071427
