Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei, left, canceled a visit to Australia, after Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer, speaking in Melbourne on Aug. 5, was granted a visa. Reuters (He Yafei); Associated Press (Rebiya Kadeer)From The Wall Street Journal:
CANBERRA, Australia -- Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said China downgraded an official visit to Australia this month after Canberra granted a travel visa to exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer, in the latest sign of a growing diplomatic rift between Canberra and Beijing.
China canceled the scheduled visit by Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei to an Australia-led Pacific Islands forum in Cairns, Queensland state, beginning Aug. 4 and sent a special envoy instead, Mr. Smith told lawmakers.
Read more ....
My Comment: The Chinese have become very assertive in their foreign policy this past decade. Expect China to be in more confrontations like this with other countries in the near future.