Emirates Stops Flights to 3 Major Australian Cities

FILE PHOTO - An Emirates Airbus A380-800 plane is seen at Nice International airport in Nice, France, September 19, 2018. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
FILE PHOTO - An Emirates Airbus A380-800 plane is seen at Nice International airport in Nice, France, September 19, 2018. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
TT

Emirates Stops Flights to 3 Major Australian Cities

FILE PHOTO - An Emirates Airbus A380-800 plane is seen at Nice International airport in Nice, France, September 19, 2018. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
FILE PHOTO - An Emirates Airbus A380-800 plane is seen at Nice International airport in Nice, France, September 19, 2018. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

Dubai-based Emirates has suspended flights to Australia's three largest cities.

The carrier was one of the last to maintain routes into and out of the country's east coast throughout most of the pandemic but on Friday evening told travelers a handful of planned flights next week would be the last.

"Due to operational reasons, Emirates flights to/from Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne will be suspended until further notice," Emirates said on its website.

The airline will still run two flights a week to Perth.

Australia's borders have effectively been closed since March to curb the spread of the coronavirus, with the government even limiting the number of citizens allowed to return.

Last week travel restrictions were further tightened, with arrival numbers slashed and all travelers into the country requiring a negative Covid-19 test before flying.

In making the changes, Prime Minister Scott Morrison cited a growing number of people in quarantine testing positive for new strains of Covid-19.



UK Treasury Chief Heading to China to Revive Suspended Economic, Financial Talks

FILE PHOTO: Chancellor Rachel Reeves speaks to the media after a tour of Maidstone Hospital on December 10, 2024 in Maidstone, Britain. Dan Kitwood/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Chancellor Rachel Reeves speaks to the media after a tour of Maidstone Hospital on December 10, 2024 in Maidstone, Britain. Dan Kitwood/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
TT

UK Treasury Chief Heading to China to Revive Suspended Economic, Financial Talks

FILE PHOTO: Chancellor Rachel Reeves speaks to the media after a tour of Maidstone Hospital on December 10, 2024 in Maidstone, Britain. Dan Kitwood/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Chancellor Rachel Reeves speaks to the media after a tour of Maidstone Hospital on December 10, 2024 in Maidstone, Britain. Dan Kitwood/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Britain's Treasury chief is travelling to China this weekend to discuss economic and financial cooperation between the countries, as the UK's Labour government seeks to reset strained ties with Beijing.
The Treasury said Friday that Rachel Reeves will travel to Beijing and Shanghai and will meet with her Chinese government counterpart, Vice Premier He Lifeng, Reuters reported.
Reeves' trip is expected to revive the China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue — annual bilateral talks that have been suspended since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and deteriorating relations in recent years.
A series of spying allegations from both sides, China’s support for Russia in the Ukraine war and a crackdown on civil liberties in Hong Kong, a former British colony, have soured ties.
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and the UK Financial Conduct Authority's chief executive, Nikhil Rathi, are also in the delegation, according to the Treasury. Representatives from some of Britain’s biggest financial services firms will join the trip.
Officials did not provide details, but media reports have said senior executives from HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered were included.
Reeves' visit comes after Foreign Secretary David Lammy travelled to China in October and Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Brazil in November.
The meetings form part of a bid by Starmer, who was elected as leader in July, to strengthen political and economic ties with China, the UK's fifth-largest trading partner.
Officials said Starmer wanted a “pragmatic” approach to working with Beijing on global stability, climate change and the transition to clean energy.
But some in the opposition Conservative Party have criticized his stance and said trade ties should not come at the expense of national security and human rights concerns.
British political leaders and intelligence chiefs have warned repeatedly of the security threats that China poses. Calls to tackle the challenge grew louder last month when it emerged that an alleged Chinese spy had cultivated close ties with Prince Andrew and carried out “covert and deceptive activity” for China's ruling Communist Party, according to officials.
Nevertheless, Lammy told reporters in London on Thursday that “there are many areas of trade that don’t impact on national security.”
He said Reeves “will repeat many of the messages that I took to China.”
“What we’ve said is in this complex relationship with a global superpower, we are guided by three Cs”: challenge, compete and cooperate, for example in areas including health and climate challenges, Lammy added.