Australia and China spat over coronavirus inquiry deepens

Australia and China traded barbs on Tuesday in an increasingly acrimonious diplomatic spat over Australia's support for a global inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, as Australia recorded its 100th COVID-19 fatality. Australia's relative success in constraining the spread of the virus has been overshadowed by the rift with its largest trading partner, which was exacerbated by a World Health Assembly (WHA) resolution in favour of the inquiry. In an unusually blunt statement on the same day that China imposed hefty tariffs on Australian barley exports, China's embassy in Canberra said it was "nothing but a joke" for Australia to claim the resolution was vindication of its push for a global review.

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