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Australia Joins US Diplomatic Boycott of Beijing Olympics

Australia Joins US Diplomatic Boycott of Beijing Olympics
folder_openAsia-Pacific... access_time2 years ago
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By Staff, Agencies

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed on Wednesday that Canberra will be joining the United States in boycotting China’s upcoming 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.

The diplomatic boycott, which was announced by the US on Monday, was imposed in response to China’s human rights abuses in China’s Xinjiang region, Washington said.

Although Morrison did not use the word “boycott,” he said that Canberra, like Washington, would be sending only its athletes to Beijing, without official representation from Australia present at the games.

He cited Australia’s concerns over China’s human rights abuses as the reason behind the boycott, as well as Beijing’s series of trade strikes against Canberra and the country’s reluctance to communicate.

“[We are] very happy to talk to the Chinese government about these issues and there’s been no obstacle to that occurring on our side, but the Chinese government has consistently not accepted those opportunities for us to meet about these issues,” Morrison said, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

“Obviously, it is of no surprise that we wouldn’t be sending Australian officials to those Games,” he added.

The staff at Australia’s embassy in China and Canberra’s ambassador to Beijing, Graham Fletcher, will also participate in the boycott of the games.

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