The Chinese Communist Party last week criticised Australia's record after thegovernment-initiated Brereton report found Australian special forces soldiers allegedly committed 39 murders in Afghanistan.

"These reports point to the hypocrisy of some western countries who like to consider themselves as guardians of human rights and freedom,"Zhao said then.

China has detained up to 1 million Muslim Uighurs in re-education camps in Xinjiang and been criticised for its crackdown in Hong Kong. New national security laws imposed by Beijing on the former British colony punish dissent with sentences of up to life in prison.

The decision by an official government spokesman to share the image represents another shift in China's ongoing dispute with Australia that now covers both the trade and defence sectors.

China has hit half-a-dozen Australian industries with trade strikes this year. Last week it effectivelywiped out Australia's wine exports to China by imposing tariffs of up to 200 per cent. It has also blocked coal,timber and seafood shipments from entering the country,threatening up to $20 billion in trade each year.

The Chinese embassy has issueda list of 14 grievances with Australia and urged the Morrison government to reverse its policies on foreign interference,Huawei and the South China Sea. The Australian government has said it has no intention of changing its policies or positions.

Russia's Foreign Ministry has backed up China's criticism of Australia's war record,accusing Australia of failing to uphold the rules-based international order after the finding's of the four-year Brereton inquiry were made public.

"This is a truly shocking report,"Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.

"It makes us reassess the true meaning of the official line pronounced by Canberra to protect the rules-based world order."