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Mr Albanese suggested Australia's policy toward a more belligerent China would not divide the parties during the campaign.
'Whoever's in government, it will be a difficult relationship,' he said. 'It will be difficult because the posture of China has changed. It is China that has changed, not Australia that has changed.'
'I don't blame the government and never have for the current circumstances,' Mr Albanese added.
Throughout Prime Minister Scott Morrison's tenure, Chinese ministers have refused to speak to their Australian counterparts while key Australian exports including coal, wine and barley have been disrupted.
Exporters have generally supported the government's willingness to risk angering China through policies such as calling for an independent investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mr Albanese said a Labor government would deal with China 'in a mature way. Not by being provocative for the sake of it to make a domestic political point.'
'I don't argue that a change of government will simply change the relationship. Because that's just something we have to deal with,' Mr Albanese said.
Mr Albanese said the three pillars of a Labor government's foreign policy would be Australia's alliance with the US, engagement with regional partners and engagement in multilateral forums including the United Nations.
He was critical of government cuts to aid spending in the Asia-Pacific region which helped China increase its influence in the region.
'It was very short sighted for this government to withdraw from aid in the Pacific in the way that they did,' Mr Albanese said.
'If Australia and democratic nations withdraw, guess what? There are others who may want to fill that gap,' he added.
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