Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin on April 23, 2024
Presided over the regular press conference
Beijing Youth Daily: According to reports, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will make it clear to Chinese officials during his visit that the US and its allies are increasingly unhappy with China's continued provision of key technologies and products such as chips and cruise missile engines to Russia to support Russia's industrial reconstruction. While Blinken did not say what measures the United States intends to take, the United States is considering imposing sanctions on Chinese financial institutions and other entities, according to people familiar with the matter. Do you have any comment?
Wang Wenbin: While the US has introduced a bill on large-scale aid to Ukraine, it has also made groundless accusations against normal economic and trade exchanges between China and Russia. This is extremely hypocritical and irresponsible, and China firmly opposes it.
On the Ukraine issue, China has always adhered to an objective and fair position, actively promoted peace talks, and promoted a political settlement. China has always controlled the export of dual-use items in accordance with laws and regulations. China is not the creator or party to the Ukraine crisis, and has never added fuel to the fire, let alone taken advantage of the opportunity, nor accepted to shift the blame.
It must be pointed out that China's right to conduct normal economic and trade exchanges with all countries in the world, including Russia, on the basis of equality and mutual benefit brooks no interference or undermination, and China's legitimate and lawful rights and interests brook no infringement.
We advise the US side that adding fuel to the fire or smearing and smearing the blame is not the right way to resolve the Ukraine issue. Only by taking into account the legitimate security concerns of all parties and establishing a balanced, effective and sustainable European security framework through dialogue and negotiation is the only right choice.
Chinese Global Program Center: We noted that Foreign Minister Wang Yi has just concluded his visit to Cambodia.
Wang Wenbin: Wang Yi, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Minister of the CPC Central Committee, paid an official visit to Cambodia from April 21 to 23. Cambodian King Sihamoni, Senate Chairman Hun Sen, and Prime Minister Hun Manet respectively met with Wang Yi, who also co-chaired the seventh meeting of the China-Cambodia Intergovernmental Coordination Committee with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sun Chanto, and held talks with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Song Jinda.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that China and Cambodia are iron-clad friends who help each other and share weal and woe. Under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping and Cambodian leaders, the building of a China-Cambodia community with a shared future has always been at the forefront of the times and has become a model for building a new type of international relations. China is ready to work with Cambodia to implement the strategic consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, inject new connotations into the "diamond six-sided" cooperation framework, and add new impetus to the construction of the "Industrial Development Corridor" and the "Fish and Rice Corridor", so that China-Cambodia friendship will be like iron, unity will be like steel, and cooperation will shine like diamonds. China will always be Cambodia's most reliable partner and strongest backing.
The Cambodian side said that China is a close friend and strategic partner of Cambodia. The Cambodian side remains unchanged in its determination to pursue a policy of friendship with China and to promote cooperation with China, and firmly believes that the friendship between Cambodia and China will be passed down from generation to generation and will last forever. Cambodia firmly adheres to the one-China policy, firmly supports China's position on issues concerning China's core interests, actively supports President Xi Jinping's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind and the three major global initiatives, and stands ready to strengthen cooperation with China in various fields to jointly safeguard regional peace and stability.
During the visit, the two sides reached a broad consensus. The two sides agreed to give full play to the coordinating role of the China-Cambodia Intergovernmental Coordination Committee, continue to promote the building of a high-quality, high-level and high-standard China-Cambodia community with a shared future in the new era, and jointly advocate free, open, equal, inclusive and inclusive multilateralism and economic globalization.
The two sides agreed to strengthen high-level exchanges, deepen the exchange of experience in governance, jointly crack down on transnational crimes such as online gambling and wire fraud, drug trafficking, etc., promote the synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and Cambodia's Pentagon Strategy, formulate the cooperation plan for the Industrial Development Corridor as soon as possible, promote the preliminary design of the China-Cambodia Railway, promote the implementation of more early harvest projects of the "Fish and Rice Corridor" such as the China Agricultural Demonstration Center, and implement the China-Cambodia Free Trade Agreement with high quality.
The two sides agreed to take the "China-Cambodia Year of People-to-People Exchanges" as an opportunity to encourage tourism exchanges between the two countries, increase flights between the two countries, and carry out more practical exchanges between youth, local governments and friendly organizations. The Cambodian side will provide support for the resumption of operations of the Chinese Cultural Center in Cambodia.
The two sides reaffirmed their willingness to actively cooperate within the framework of the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, and continue to strengthen coordination and cooperation in platforms such as the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation and China-ASEAN Cooperation. Both sides believe that it is in the common interests of countries in the region to maintain the hard-won peace and stability in the region and promote regional development and prosperity. The two sides stressed that they will fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, advance consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, and strive to reach the Code at an early date.
Reuters: According to the Wall Street Journal, the US is drafting draft sanctions that threaten to remove some Chinese banks from the global financial system. U.S. officials said they hoped the measure would stop China from providing commercial support to Russian military production. At the same time, the head of the Department of American and International Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on the US side to immediately stop imposing unilateral sanctions on Chinese companies and individuals, saying that the Ukraine issue is not an issue between China and the United States. What is the Foreign Ministry's response to the Wall Street Journal's report, and what countermeasures will China take if the sanctions against banks are enforced?
Wang Wenbin: When I answered a question from a reporter from Beijing Youth Daily, I actually answered your question. I would like to stress once again that we firmly oppose the hypocrisy of the US side to add fuel to the fire while shifting the blame to China. China's right to conduct normal economic and trade exchanges with other countries, including Russia, is inviolable, and we will firmly defend our legitimate rights and interests.
Xinhua News Agency: On April 22-23, the Ministerial Meeting of the 80th Annual Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) was held in Bangkok, Thailand. The meeting was attended by the Chinese delegation. What is China's assessment of this meeting?
Wang Wenbin: ESCAP is the most important comprehensive economic and social development organization of the United Nations in the Asia-Pacific region. The annual meeting held in-depth discussions on the theme of "leveraging digital innovation for sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region", gathered consensus among all parties, reached a series of practical cooperation outcomes, issued a strong message of upholding multilateralism, adhering to open cooperation and innovation-driven, and jointly promoting inclusive and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region, and maintained the positive momentum and correct direction of Asia-Pacific cooperation. Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu led the Chinese delegation to attend the meeting and spoke at the general debate, explaining China's views on the situation in the Asia-Pacific region and its propositions on regional cooperation.
China is an important member of the Asia-Pacific region, and we attach great importance to the role of ESCAP, and will continue to provide financial support through the China-ESCAP Cooperation Fund and other channels, and will strengthen the synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global Development Initiative and ESCAP, so as to inject strong impetus into Asia-Pacific cooperation. We will bring more new opportunities to the Asia-Pacific region with the new achievements of Chinese-style modernization, promote common development and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region, and promote the building of an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future.
AFP: According to reports, the assistant of a German politician who participated in the EU elections in June has been arrested on suspicion of espionage for China. Do you have any comment?
Wang Wenbin: We have noted the relevant reports and related hype. As a matter of fact, everyone can clearly see that the so-called "Chinese espionage threat theory" is not new in the European public opinion arena, and in recent years, there has been a new round of hype before and after high-level interactions between China and Europe. The intention of this hype is very obvious, which is to smear and suppress China and undermine the atmosphere of China-EU cooperation.
We would like to stress that China has always adhered to the principle of mutual respect and non-interference in each other's internal affairs to carry out cooperation with all countries in the world, including Europe, and promoted mutually beneficial cooperation with relevant parties on the basis of abiding by laws and regulations. We hope that the relevant personnel on the German side will abandon the Cold War mentality and stop engaging in anti-China political manipulation under the pretext of the so-called "risk of espionage".
Bloomberg: You mentioned the "so-called 'Chinese spy threat'", do you deny that the people arrested in Germany were Chinese spies? A few days ago, three other Germans were also arrested on suspicion of espionage for China, do you also deny that these three were Chinese spies?
Wang Wenbin: I just briefed on China's position. The recent reports of so-called "Chinese espionage activities in Europe" are all hype, intended to smear and suppress China. Not only in Germany, but also in the United Kingdom. We are categorically opposed to this hype. We also urge relevant parties to stop spreading disinformation about the so-called "Chinese spy threat" and stop anti-China political manipulation and malicious slander.
BBC: There are also two men accused of espionage for China in the UK. Does the Chinese government deny that they are spies?
Wang Wenbin: If you have noticed the relevant information released by the Chinese side, you should have seen that the Chinese side responded to the relevant reports in September last year. We would like to reiterate that the allegation that China is suspected of stealing British intelligence is completely fabricated and maliciously slandered, and we firmly oppose it. It is hoped that the relevant parties will stop their malicious manipulation against China.
Reuters: The head of the Department of US and Pacific Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave a briefing on US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to China this week, covering a range of issues. Regarding measures such as "overcapacity" and export controls taken by the United States, the official said that the United States has repeatedly made mistakes in launching a new Section 301 investigation out of domestic political needs, and China will resolutely respond to it. What response measures is China considering?
Wang Wenbin: On this issue, we have repeatedly stated China's position. I would like to reiterate once again that China has always maintained that the essence of China-US economic and trade relations is mutually beneficial, and there is no winner in a trade war. The additional Section 301 tariffs imposed by the United States on China have seriously disrupted the normal economic and trade exchanges between China and the United States, harmed the interests of enterprises of the two countries, especially American consumers, and have been ruled by the WTO to have violated its rules. We urge the US side to earnestly abide by WTO rules, cancel all tariffs imposed on China, and refrain from further tariff increases. China will take all necessary measures to defend its rights and interests.
CCTV: On April 22, the US State Department released its 2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, saying that China has committed "genocide" and "crimes against humanity" in Xinjiang, deprived Hong Kong of political freedom and autonomy, and violated human rights in Tibet. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also attacked the human rights situation in Xinjiang in his preamble. Do you have any comment?
Wang Wenbin: China firmly opposes the so-called "human rights reports" that the US has concocted year after year, and China-related content is full of political lies and ideological bias.
The Chinese people have the best say in China's human rights situation. We have historically solved the problem of absolute poverty, developed whole-process people's democracy, built the world's largest education, social security and medical systems, and continuously strengthened the people's sense of gain, happiness and security, and embarked on a human rights development path that conforms to the trend of the times and suits the national conditions of our country. According to a poll conducted by Harvard University for more than 10 years, the Chinese people are more than 90% satisfied with the Chinese government.
On the other hand, the so-called human rights report of the US side points fingers and makes irresponsible remarks about the human rights situation in nearly 200 countries and regions around the world, but it only omits itself, which once again exposes the selfish nature of US hegemony and bullying and the hypocritical double standard of saying one thing and doing another. If the United States really cares about human rights, it should face up to and properly resolve the problems of gun violence, drug epidemics, racial discrimination, and trampling on human rights and dignity in the United States; it should face up to and reflect on the human rights disasters caused by the United States' foreign intervention and the provision of arms and fuel to the flames in conflict areas. Ignoring the more than 110,000 civilian casualties in Gaza, the United States has vetoed four consecutive UN Security Council efforts to promote an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This is the best proof that the United States has ignored and trampled on human rights.
The international community has long seen through the face of the United States' fake human rights and true hegemony. What the US should do is to reflect on itself, first solve its own problems, stop pretending to be a "human rights teacher", stop pointing fingers at the human rights situation in other countries, stop wantonly interfering in other countries' internal affairs, violating other countries' human rights rights in the name of human rights and democracy, and exporting conflicts and turmoil to the outside world.
Bloomberg: The German authorities have not released the full names of those arrested on espionage charges, so we don't know any details, including who they are. Even though you don't know their names, do you still categorically deny that these four people are Chinese spies?
Wang Wenbin: Although you don't know the names of the people arrested, you do know that the German side announced that these people are so-called "Chinese spies". We have also made it clear to everyone that the so-called "Chinese espionage threat theory" is completely fabricated out of nothing and is maliciously slandered.
BBC: Was the Chinese government surprised by Blinken's remarks? For example, he called China a major supporter of Russia's military-industrial complex, and warned that China could not maintain good relations with the West while supporting Russia's war efforts. Did he surprise the Chinese government by making such remarks ahead of his upcoming visit to China, and would they reduce the likelihood of good talks between the two sides during the visit?
Wang Wenbin: That's the first question I answered.
BBC: So immediately following up on the previous question, more broadly, given the current tensions between China and the United States, what is the best outcome of Blinken's visit to China, and what is the outcome of the visit that China is most looking forward to?
Wang Wenbin: Secretary Blinken's visit to China is part of the implementation of the consensus reached at the San Francisco summit between China and the United States, maintaining dialogue, managing differences, advancing cooperation, and strengthening coordination on international affairs. China and the United States will exchange views on China-US relations and international and regional issues of common concern, focusing on the implementation of the important consensus reached at the San Francisco meeting and the recent phone call between the two heads of state. Yesterday, the responsible person of the Department of American and International Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave a background briefing to the media on the relevant situation of the visit. If you are concerned, you can check the relevant reports.