China is stepping up economic reprisals against Australia, a warning against all Western countries that dare to criticize it.

Nicolas Barré takes stock of a current economic issue.

For having dared to criticize China, Australia is the subject of unprecedented economic sanctions.

This is a textbook case!

Across Australia, Beijing is sending a message to the West.

If you criticize us, this is what will happen to you.

Beijing's anger at Canberra began a few months ago when Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent investigation into the origin of the Covid-19 epidemic.

He was the first to do so.

Since then, the WHO has followed suit.

But Xi Jinping's regime did not digest it and decided to make Australians pay dearly for their insolence.

Everything is good to make them pay.

China halted beef imports as the country is the number one customer for Australian ranchers.

She accuses Australians of dumping wine.

It decided to impose tariffs of 80% on barley.

And since this weekend, China has blocked imports of Australian coal.

Coal is Australia's second largest export product.

She suddenly seized the WTO on Wednesday, but that will have no quick consequences.

Australians fear further Chinese sanctions.

Because Beijing is not in the nuance: at the end of November, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted on Twitter a doctored photo of an Australian soldier clutching a knife full of blood on the throat of an Afghan child.

Twitter is banned in China, but that does not prevent the regime's propaganda from using it.

China has decided to treat Australia as an enemy as well because this country was also one of the first to remove Huawei from 5G networks.

But also to criticize China for its actions in Xinjiang and Hong Kong.

This arm wrestling thousands of kilometers away is followed with great attention here.

We see a kind of dress rehearsal of what could happen to us, French, Germans, British.

In this unprecedented showdown with a large Western country, Xi Jinping's diplomacy uses the full range of economic pressures.

Obviously, vis-à-vis a country where 40% of exports go to China, these pressures are very painful.

Europe is less dependent but we have to anticipate rougher relations in the future.

The most worried today are the British: the post-Brexit United Kingdom will find itself somewhat in the same position as Australia, alone in the face of Chinese economic pressures.

Among the 14 grievances sent by Beijing to Australians, mention is made of the way in which the Australian media are talking about China.

Economic sanctions to muzzle the press: Xi Jinping's regime is really ready for anything