China-Australia relations are unlikely to be back on track soon - analyst

CNBC reports that according to one political expert, China-Australia ties won’t be getting back on track anytime soon.. 

James Laurenceson, director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney, described the strained relations between Canberra and Beijing as “complicated.”

“I see no prospects on the horizon for this relationship to get back on track,” he told, adding both sides are blaming each other for the breakdown in dialogue.

The National Development and Reform Commission, China’s economic planning agency, announced Thursday that it will “indefinitely suspend all activities under the framework of the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue.”

The move comes after some officials in Australia launched unspecified measures “out of a Cold War mindset” to disrupt cooperation with China, the NDRC statement said.

China’s decision to halt all activities under the framework is more than just a symbolic move, said Laurenceson.

He called Beijing’s latest move a “tit-for-tat” retaliation to show its displeasure after Australia scrapped two Belt and Road deals last month.

Australian Minister for Trade Tourism and Investment Dan Tehan on Thursday expressed his disappointment at the suspension of talks.