Australian PM slams China for ‘outrageous’ tweet, seeks apology

Australia’s prime minister Scott Morrison lashed out at Chinese government spokesman for a “repugnant”, “outrageous” and “appalling” tweet from and demanded a formal apology from Beijing.

This comes after Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lijian Zhao posted a staged image of a man dressed as an Australian soldier holding a bloody knife to an Afghan child’s throat.

Calling the tweet, “outrageous and disgusting slur” against the Australian armed forces, Morrison called on the social media giant to take it down.

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“It is utterly outrageous and it cannot be justified on any basis whatsoever. The Chinese government should be totally ashamed of this post,” the PM tweeted.

The relations between Australia and China are deteriorating and China has introduced a string of economic sanctions on Australian goods.

The ill-feeling appears to have been prompted by Canberra’s decision to push back on Beijing’s growing power in the region, to crack down on Chinese influence operations Down Under and to call for an independent investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. 

The Chinese government spokesman had tweeted that he was “shocked by the murder of Afghan civilians & prisoners by Australian soldiers. We strongly condemn such acts, & call for holding them accountable.”