Beijing has cautioned Australia about potential political ramifications after the latter's major political parties announced election campaign pledges to terminate a 99-year lease held by a Chinese-owned company on the strategic Darwin Port.

Both Labor and Coalition have committed to buying back the port from Landbridge Group, a Chinese operating firm, regardless of the outcome of the upcoming election, 9News reported.

However, the Chinese foreign ministry expressed concern over the move, cautioning that turning the port lease into a political issue could destabilize the improving relations between Australia and China.

The two countries have only recently started to recover from a period of intense diplomatic tensions that led to an economic fallout.

"We urge the Australian side to provide a fair, non-discriminatory and predictable business environment for Chinese enterprises investing and operating in Australia, and refrain from overstretching the concept of national security or politicizing normal business cooperation," spokesperson Lin Jian said Monday.

Two previous reviews -- one commissioned when Peter Dutton served as Coalition defense minister, and the other conducted by the Albanese government in 2023 -- concluded there were no national security grounds to terminate the lease.

Since the Labor government came to power in May 2022, relations with China........

© International Business Times