Australia cancelled deals struck by its state of Victoria with China on Beijing’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative, prompting the Chinese embassy in Canberra to warn that already tense bilateral ties were bound to worsen.
Under a new legal procedure in Australia, Foreign Minister Marise Payne has the power to review deals reached with other nations by the country’s states and universities.
Payne said she had decided to cancel four deals, including two that Victoria agreed with China, in 2018 and 2019, which are linked to the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative.
She said, “I consider these four arrangements to be inconsistent with Australia’s foreign policy or adverse to our foreign relations”. In response, the Chinese embassy in Canberra showed “strong displeasure and resolute opposition” to the deal cancellations.
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