Global Times reported the dramatic change in Australia’s Prime Minister that took place on August 24 by celebrating the fact that Malcolm Turnbull, who completely “screwed up the China-Australia relationship,” had “finally stepped down.” However, the report immediately mentioned that “the new guy just stabbed China in the back yesterday.” That refers to the new Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who is the sixth Prime Minister in eleven years. He just announced the day before, as the Treasurer of Australia, that Huawei would be banned from participating in building Australia’s 5G communications network. Huawei complained that the “disappointing” ban was totally “political” and was completely against the “spirit of free trade.” The report further mentioned that, in 2016, Morrison had also refused Chinese bidders from participating in the Ausgrid deal. However, Morrison did emphasize the importance of the China-Australia trade partnership a few years ago. The author concluded that, it seems the future of the China-Australia relationship is still full of uncertainty and that it might be a wise idea to wait until Australia holds its general election next year.
Source: Global Times, August 24, 2018
http://world.huanqiu.com/article/2018-08/12816478.html