China Warns UK to Stop Slandering Beijing to Avoid Further Damage to Ties

By Staff, Agencies

China has censured persisting efforts by London to slander Beijing and warned of deteriorating ties after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak referred to China as "the biggest challenge" to global security during the G7 summit in Japan.

"The relevant remarks by the British side are simply parroting words from others and constitute malicious slanders in disregard of the facts," China's embassy in London declared in a statement on Sunday, vowing that such moves may further harm mutual relations.

The statement came after Sunak claimed in hostile remarks earlier on Sunday at the summit of the Group of Seven [G7] nations that China poses "the biggest challenge" to global security and prosperity but that other leading economies should not decouple from it.

"China firmly opposes and strongly condemns this," added the statement issued by the Chinese embassy.

Leaders of the G7 – the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Germany, Canada and Italy – met in Hiroshima for their annual summit on May 19-21. They have pointedly condemned China’s persisting economic and military progress and assertiveness, but insisted that they are seeking to keep the door open to cooperation with Beijing.

The US-led group also called for what it described as a “peaceful resolution” to China’s long-standing claim to the breakaway island territory of Taiwan.

China maintains sovereignty over Taiwan and under the “One China” policy, nearly all countries across the globe recognize that sovereignty, which bars them from establishing direct diplomatic contact with the self-proclaimed government in Taipei.