Source: School of Foreign Languages
Author: Professor Chang Chenguang

On December 14, 2012, a new collection entitled China-Australia Relations: towards a Community with Shared Interests, edited by Professor Chang Chenguang, Director of Australian Studies Centre, Sun Yat-sen University, Professor Yu Changsen, Deputy Executive Director of the Centre for Oceanian Studies, Sun Yat-sen University, was launched at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The Honorable Simon Crean MP, Minister for the Arts, Australia, Ms Li Xiaolin, President of Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and Dr. Chau Chak Wing, President of Association of Australia China Friendship and Exchange, attended ceremony and unveiled the book. Also present at the ceremony were the editors and Ms Frances Adamson, the Australian ambassador to China.

This special collection was put together in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of China-Australia diplomatic relations. The contributors are leading scholars in the areas of international relations, diplomacy, Australian studies, history, economy and trade. The contributions provide an overview of the development of Sino-Australian relations in the past 40 years and discuss some of the major current issues and challenges concerning bilateral relations. The volume also includes the speech, “Australia in China Century”, by the Honorable Bob Carr, Foreign Minister of Australia. The book is dedicated to Gough Whitlam, former Australian Prime Minister, who established diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China in 1972.