Prime Minister Scott Morrison has refused to overreact to a war of words between his home affairs minister and the China while he was out of the country on an official visit to Fiji.
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Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton drew the wrath of the Chinese Embassy on Friday after saying the policies of the Communist Party of China are inconsistent with those of Australia.
While acknowledging the importance of the trading relationship between the two countries, he attacked the Asian giant over the theft of intellectual property and the hacking of government or non-government organisations.
The Chinese embassy in Australia rejected Mr Dutton's comments, calling them "irrational", "shocking", "baseless" and a "malicious slur".
Mr Morrison said the minister was merely pointing out there are differences between the two countries - Australia being a liberal western democracy and China is a Communist Party state.
"We'll promote the values that have built our country ... and China will do what they do in their country, and we respect that too," Mr Morrison said during his Fijian visit.
However, Labor frontbencher Andrew Leigh was unimpressed, saying the bilateral relationship has fallen to a "parlous low".
"It is vital that the China relationship is managed with sophistication and that's not what we've seen from the Morrison government," Dr Leigh told reporters.
Labor's home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally can expect to push the point further when she appears on ABC television's Insiders program on Sunday.
Australian Associated Press