Anthony Albanese has defended sluggish progress on his election pledge to put the Port of Darwin “back into Australian hands”, saying it was not Labor’s decision to lease it to a Chinese company in the first place.Australia’s northernmost port has been controlled by China’s Landbridge Group for more than a decade under a 99-year lease approved by the Coalition government at the time.The company’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party have sparked security concerns despite a government review in 2023 finding “it was not necessary to vary or cancel the lease” for national security.The Prime Minister accepted those findings but switched positions after the Coalition promised to break the lease in the lead-up to the last year’s federal election as part of a suite of national security policies.Fronting media in a rare visit to Darwin, Mr Albanese was asked for an update.“What we’re doing is continuing to argue the case,” he said.He stressed that he was opposition infrastructure spokesman when the port was leased.“I opposed the sale of Darwin Port,” he said.“I opposed the commonwealth government giving an incentive to the NT government to sell the Darwin Port through its asset recycling program.“I think that was a mistake, and I’m determined that it will come back into Australian hands, and we’re negotiating those issues through.”In making the promise last year, Mr Albanese said his government would look at both private and public ways to reclaim the port.The preferred method was giving the lease to a private Australian firm, with Mr Albanese suggesting super funds were in the mix.If a private buyer could not be found, the commonwealth would step in.Landbridge, which has repeatedly said the port is not for sale, launched legal action against Canberra in April to stop any attempts to break the lease.In a statement at the time, the company accused the Albanese government of being “discriminatory and inconsistent with Australia’s obligations under (the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement)”.“Landbridge acquired its interest in the port through a fair, open and competitive process in full compliance with all applicable Australian laws and regulatory approvals,” it said.“Multiple Australian government reviews have confirmed there are no national security concerns.“Having engaged with the commonwealth in an effort to reach a constructive resolution, Landbridge has regrettably been unable to achieve a satisfactory outcome through dialogue alone and is now taking the necessary steps to protect its legal rights.”Mr Albanese’s pledge has also ruffled feathers in Beijing.In an annual press briefing to media earlier this year, China’s outgoing ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian threatened that his government “has an obligation to protect the … legitimate interest of Chinese companies overseas”.“So if anything happens, like the port will be taken back by force or forceful measures, then we have an obligation to take measures to protect the Chinese company’s interest,” he said.Pressed on what sort of counteraction Australia could expect, Mr Xiao kept the options vague, saying a resolution was not yet clear.However, he did float that any Australian moves could hurt trade and investment from China.Read related topics:Anthony Albanese