Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Relations between Australia and China, the world’s biggest buyer of metals, haven’t been harmed by the detention of Stern Hu, a Rio Tinto Group employee and Australian citizen, China’s ambassador said.

“It will not affect any relationship between China and Australia,” Ambassador Zhang Junsai told reporters in Sydney. “This has nothing to do with the Australian government. Whether you like it or not, this is the law of China. We should respect each other’s law.”

China’s July 6 detention of Hu and three Chinese Rio executives for allegedly stealing commercial secrets has tested ties between the countries. China is Australia’s second-biggest trading partner, with two-way trade valued at A$68 billion ($56 billion) in 2008.

Tensions rose after London-based Rio Tinto rebuffed a $19.5 billion investment from state-owned Aluminum Corp. of China in June. Hu’s arrest and Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer’s visit in August escalated the spat and the state- run China Daily then accused Australia of an “anti-China chorus” from “sinophobic politicians” in an editorial.

Australia’s Department of Defense yesterday blocked a A$45 million investment by Wuhan Iron & Steel Group, China’s third- largest steelmaker, in Western Plans Resources Ltd.’s Hawks Nest iron ore project because it’s too close to the Woomera weapons testing area. Zhang today said China accepted the rejection that would have seen Wuhan buy half of the magnetite project.

Australia blocked a A$2.6 billion bid by state-owned China Minmetals Corp. for OZ Minerals Ltd. in March on national- security concern because the A$1.2 billion Prominent Hill mine is located near Woomera. It later cleared the sale of most of the rest of OZ Mineral’s assets to Minmetals.

To contact the reporters on this story: Angus Whitley in Sydney at awhitley1@bloomberg.net; Rebecca Keenan in Canberra at rkeenan5@bloomberg.net;

Last Updated: September 23, 2009 21:23 EDT