Australia’s foreign minister held an emergency meeting with the Chinese ambassador in the wake of Canberra’s failure to ratify an extradition treaty with China, a source familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.
SYDNEY: Australia’s foreign minister held an emergency meeting with the Chinese ambassador in the wake of Canberra’s failure to ratify an extradition treaty with China, a source familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.
Australia cancelled a parliamentary vote on Tuesday to finally ratify an extradition treaty with China, 10 years after it was signed, with the government set for an embarrassing defeat on the vote amid opposition on the grounds of China’s humanitarian record.
Eager to head-off any possible diplomatic fallout, Bishop met with China’s ambassador to Australia, Cheng Jingye, on Tuesday, the source said. The Australian newspaper reported that the ambassador expressed “disappointment” at the cancelled vote.
The meeting came just hours after China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying called on Australia to approve the treaty.
