Out of deep freeze: just how real is the thaw in Australia’s relationship with China?

As diplomatic relations between China and Australia reach the 50th anniversary, experts say the challenge of bilateral differences will remain for the long haul. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Hundreds of people are gathered on the back lawns of the Chinese embassy in Canberra. Chinese and Australian flags surround a podium set up for speeches marking the imminent 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

But towards the back of the garden, where members of the Canberra diplomatic corps, businesspeople, academics and journalists are milling about, stands a striking image. A large oil painting depicts a 1973 meeting between Gough Whitlam and Mao Zedong in Beijing. Whitlam was the Australian leader who opened diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China on 21 December 1972.