China suspends economic framework activities with Australia

China’s government has announced it is indefinitely suspending all activities under the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue – the first formal freeze of a diplomatic mechanism since relations between the two countries soured.

Analysts say the move, by China’s main planning body, the National Development and Reform Commission, is likely retaliation for the federal government’s recent announcement that it was tearing up two Belt and Road agreements between Beijing and Victoria.

In a statement, the commission accused Australia of unfairly targeting China.

“Recently, some Australian Commonwealth government officials launched a series of measures to disrupt the normal exchanges and cooperation between China and Australia out of Cold War mindset and ideological discrimination,” the commission said.

However the decision is likely to have little practical impact on Australia.

The last China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue was held back in 2017, when then-trade minister Steve Ciobo travelled to Beijing for talks.

But the bilateral relationship has deteriorated since then, and took an even sharper dive last year after Canberra called for an international inquiry into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting trade reprisals from Beijing.

All high-level ministerial communications have now been effectively frozen by China’s government.

Analyst Jeffrey Wilson, from the Perth USAsia Centre, said Beijing’s decision to suspend the dialogue was an “act of pure symbolism” with “zero substantive effect”.

“The Strategic Economic Dialogue has been in abeyance for nearly four years; not to mention the fact that official interactions across the board have been wholly suspended by the Chinese side since April 2020,” he said.

“It is an act of pure symbolism, reflecting China’s need for some kind of ‘tit-for-tat’ retaliation against Australia.

“Specifically, it retaliates against the cancellation of Victoria’s two [Belt and Road Initiative memorandums of understanding], and the announcement of another review of the Darwin Port lease”.

Mr Wilson said the announcement might also indicate that China had “run out of ammunition” to aim at Australia.

“China has placed sanctions against practically all major Australian exporters that it can, bilateral investment has collapsed, and intergovernmental discussions are non-existent.

“By going thermonuclear in 2020, China now has no substantive forms of leverage over Australia, and has to resort to largely meaningless acts of symbolism.”

The ABC has approached the federal government for comment.