China’s top diplomat in Canberra says it is Australia, not China, that has engaged in economic coercion, and issued a veiled warning that Chinese students and tourists will be reluctant to return post-pandemic because of a hostile environment.

Chinese ambassador Cheng Jingye lamented that attacking his country had become the “politically correct” view in Australia, repeating Beijing’s insistence that blame for the deteriorating bilateral relationship rested with the Morrison government.