China hits back at G7 after comments on Xinjiang and Hong Kong

Beijing urges US and the G7 nations not to interfere in its internal affairs

China on Monday warned the US and other countries in the G7 against “slandering its reputation and interfering in its internal affairs” after the group chided Beijing on issues such as Xinjiang and Hong Kong.

The outburst followed the G7 leaders on Sunday asking China to allow Hong Kong to maintain its autonomy and respect the human rights of Muslims in the Xinjiang region – issues that are highly sensitive to Beijing.

China’s embassy in London expressed its dissatisfaction against the G7 and said the summit communique “deliberately slandered China, and arbitrarily interfered in China’s internal affairs.”

“This is a serious violation of the basic norms of international relations, which further exposed the sinister intentions of a few countries such as the US,” it said.

The embassy urged the US and other members of the G7 to “respect the facts, understand the situation, stop slandering China, stop interfering in China’s internal affairs, and stop harming China’s interests.”

“We will resolutely defend our national sovereignty, security, and development interests, and resolutely fight back against all kinds of injustices and infringements imposed on China,” it said.

China said it is a peace-loving country that advocates cooperation but also has its bottom lines. “China’s internal affairs must not be interfered in, China’s reputation must not be slandered, and China’s interests must not be violated,” the embassy said.

Over the last few years, China has been accused of targeting Muslims of Xinjiang within the country as well as outside even as Beijing dismisses reports about torture and abuse.

However, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Sunday’s statement from G7 was a significant move forward for the group as leaders rallied around the need to “counter and compete” with China on challenges ranging from safeguarding democracy to the technology race.

The Chinese embassy also hit back at the G7 over the call related to the peace in the Taiwan straits.

It urged other countries to abide by the one-China principle and “immediately stop all kinds of words and deeds that fuel the arrogance of ‘Taiwan independence’ forces, stop interfering in China’s internal affairs, and take concrete actions to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”

However, Taiwan’s government welcomed the G7 statement, saying the Chinese-claimed island will be a “force for good” and that they will continue to seek even greater international support.

The embassy also asked the US and the G7 to “do more things that are conducive to promoting international cooperation instead of artificially creating confrontations and frictions.”

The embassy further said that the current epidemic is still raging around the world, and “the traceability work should be carried out by global scientists, and should not be politicised.”

The caution against politicisation, something China has previously warned against, came after the G7 demanded a thorough investigation into the origins of Covid-19.

Additional reporting by agencies