Beijing did not hide its anger at some countries

Chinese bullying tactics unite their opponents

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In recent years, China has not hidden its anger at some other countries, as it has expressed that anger at times, through the tweets and militant speeches of aggressive young diplomats, and at other times through unofficial boycotts and politically motivated prosecutions.

On the other hand, members of the coalitions formed by the United States found that they had become the recipient party, including South Korea, Canada, and even Norway, which is known for its moderation, according to what was published by Bloomberg News.

However, this week's criticism of Australia by Chinese officials represents a marked escalation.

The criticism was blunt in a shocking fashion, as the Chinese embassy in Canberra presented to reporters a list of 14 ways Australia was wrong.

The list was almost ridiculously comprehensive, citing everything from the obstacles raised towards Chinese investment in Australia, to the federal government's funding of critical think tanks.

For his part, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, last Thursday, responded to the list of complaints from the Chinese embassy in Canberra, saying, "The country will continue to work in the service of its interests and will not change its policy."

A file containing a list of 14 complaints was "leaked" to the media by the Chinese embassy in Canberra, after Australia and Japan signed, last week, a historic defense agreement.

The file accuses Morrison of "poisoning bilateral relations" by standing with the United States' campaign against China, and "launching a campaign targeting China's relations with Taiwan and Hong Kong."

And given that China had already begun to restrict imports of a wide range of Australian products, from wine to charcoal, the threat was just as forthright.

"China is angry ... if it makes China an enemy, then China will be an enemy," one Chinese official told a journalist in Canberra.

And the agency «Bloomberg» that this will make many Australians feel anxious, as about a third of the country's exports of goods and services go to China.

Relations between China and Australia have been increasingly strained this year, after Canberra backed calls by the United States for an investigation into the origins of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, many executives from mining companies, food exporters and the like might agree with Australian Finance Minister Josh Frydenberg, who said before the embassy releases its list, that "the separation from China-centered supply chains will have huge economic costs." Pointing out that "it is possible that we would work with China instead."

China's reaction to Friedenberg's plea for de-escalation shows just how likely this is.

To be sure, putting pressure on Australian exports as the country goes through its first recession in 30 years is not something that a reliable partner is doing.

It is likely that it is a sign of the way the new cold economic war will end.

China has made it clear that it intends to rely on its massive economy as a weapon.

Access to Chinese consumers, profits from mainland financial markets, and investment in infrastructure will all be conditioned by the behavior and rhetoric of partner countries, according to Bloomberg.

On the other hand, this will raise new arguments within those countries, as capital allied with Chinese exporters and "doves" will line up in front of market liberals allied with local producers and national security "hawks".

The problem for China is that it has done an awful job in exploiting these divisions so far.

Her efforts did not compel Canada or South Korea to give up, and there is no reason to believe that she would be better off in Australia.

It appears that Chinese leaders are not learning. Publicly insulting other countries, no matter how small they are, makes cooperation and reaching a settlement politically impossible.

In fact, for many trading partners of China and not just Australia, the argument for diversifying export markets and supply chains is more compelling today than it was last week, according to Bloomberg.

And China must remember that the need can continue in both directions.

On the other hand, the "nuclear option" for Australia is to suspend exports of iron ore - which are pushing the steel industry on the mainland - to China, according to Bloomberg.

This "nuclear option" would be stronger if China was not close to controlling the "Simando" iron ore mine in Guinea, which is one of the largest reserves of high-quality iron ore in the world.

This should be a lesson for China's trading partners, as finding markets outside of China, or finding more efficient suppliers than those on the mainland, will cost money.

It will be difficult to defend the resources that Beijing could exploit to its advantage.

As China prepares to bully smaller countries one by one, it feels upset when others become involved in these conflicts.

The only way the world can deal with China, which is using its economic power as a weapon, is to unite together and think two steps forward.

- The criticism by Chinese officials against Australia this week represents a noticeable escalation, as the Chinese embassy in Canberra presented to reporters a list of 14 ways Australia erred.

Members of the alliances formed by the United States found that it had become the receiving party, including South Korea, Canada, and even Norway, which is known for its moderation.

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