Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would like to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping when he attends a number of international summits later this week.

Mr Albanese will head off to a series of summits on Friday in Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand.

He said he would like to speak with Mr Xi, who will be at the G20 summit in Bali as well as APEC in Thailand.

Analysts believe a possible meeting between the two leaders may take place on the sidelines of next week's summit.

"We are organising a range of meetings but they haven't been finalised and locked in.

"We'll make an announcement if and when meetings with various leaders are locked in."

The prime minister will attend four global and regional meetings, including the ASEAN-Australia, East Asia, G20 and APEC summits.

He will also address the Business 20 summit, where chief executives, investors and senior executives will meet prior to the G20 leaders' gathering.

"My role at these summits will be one of advocacy for not only Australians, but also for those of our Pacific neighbours who face many of the same pressures that we do," Mr Albanese said.

"At each summit I will emphasise Australia's commitment to the global transition to net zero, and our vision for a stable, peaceful, resilient and prosperous region."

It has been six years since an Australian prime minister met with Mr Xi.

Mr Xi is likely to have his first face-to-face meeting with US President Joe Biden at the summit, as the superpowers contend with deteriorating ties over a range of issues.

China remains a fraught issue, with politicians regularly sounding fears over national security and Beijing's growing influence in neighbouring Pacific Island countries.

In June, Canberra said an Australian surveillance jet had been dangerously intercepted by a Chinese military plane in the South China Sea.

Beijing has also criticised Australia's nuclear submarine pact with the United States and the UK, and regularly attacks the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, an influential government-funded think tank that has produced leading research on alleged human rights abuses in China's Xinjiang region.

Opposition leader meets Chinese ambassador

Opposition leader Peter Dutton met with China's ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian, on Tuesday.

According to the Chinese embassy, Mr Xiao highlighted the Liberal Party's role in developing the historically mutually beneficially relationship between the two countries and that Beijing was willing to use the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations as an opportunity to get the relationship back on the right track.

Mr Dutton said on social media that the meeting was "constructive" and that he discussed "security, trade and human rights issues" with the ambassador.

"I will continue to engage in an open and honest dialogue in matters relating to the safety, security and prosperity of our region," he said.

Foreign ministers discuss rebuilding relations

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Penny Wong and her Chinese counterpart discussed the "rebuilding of mutual trust" during a phone conversation that revealed signs of easing tensions after years of difficult ties between the countries.

The call between the foreign ministers comes a week before Mr Albanese and Mr Xi attend the G20 summit.

Australia and China maintained virtually no high-level communication during the COVID pandemic, when Beijing slapped a trade embargo on billions of dollars worth of Australian goods in retaliation for Canberra urging an independent probe into the origins of the virus.