The Australian government has refused to respond to Beijing’s “repeated” requests to begin negotiations to join one of the world’s most extensive free-trade agreements.
This is despite suggestions from Beijing that the current frosty relations between the two countries would improve if Australia backed its admission to the bloc.
China’s ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian said Beijing was urgently seeking to hold talks with the federal government on its application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
“We’ve been asking for an early start, but there’s no clear confirmative response from the Australian government yet,” he told The Australian on Wednesday.
The ambassador also signalled that the end of the year would be too late, The Australian reported.
