Chinese officials appeal to US, Australia to revive trade ties

Senior Chinese trade officials on Wednesday appealed to the U.S. and Australia to revive trade ties with Beijing.

“Cooperation is the only correct choice,” Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said at a news conference.

However, he gave no indication as to when tariff war talks with Washington might resume or whether Beijing might offer concessions.

U.S. President Joe Biden has yet to announce a strategy for dealing with Beijing but is widely expected to renew pressure trade and technology complaints that prompted his predecessor, Donald Trump, to raise taxes on Chinese imports in 2017.

Washington and Beijing raised tariffs on billions of dollars of each other's goods, disrupting global trade.

They agreed last January to postpone further penalties but most taxes already imposed stayed in place.

Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen accused "some people in Australia" of "stigmatizing" trade and investment projects between Australia and China.

"We hope that Australia will do more things conducive to mutual trust and cooperation," he said.

Tensions between the two trading partners have been growing since China's tech giant Huawei was barred from Australia's 5G network and Australia expressed its support for a probe into the origin of the coronavirus.

Beijing has blacklisted a wide range Australian of commodities and foodstuffs and barred ships loaded with millions of tons of Australian coal from entering its ports.

Meanwhile, Australia is working on a mutual defense treaty with Japan, which Chinese leaders see as a strategic rival.

Australia has also joined Washington and Southeast Asian governments in expressing concern about China's construction of military facilities on islands in the disputed South China Sea, a busy trade route.

(Image credit: AP)