BEIJING: China on Monday (Jul 27) urged the United States to "stop using the so-called espionage issue" to slander the country.
Speaking at a regular press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that it was "open knowledge" that the US itself conducts espionage activities.
AdvertisementAdvertisement"It is open knowledge that the US runs an aggressive espionage and theft programme all across the globe, sparing not even its allies. There's solid evidence for this," said Wang.
"The world has seen the act of the real thief crying 'stop the thief' too many times," he said. "We urge the US to stop using the so-called espionage issue to smear China."
Wang was responding to a question asking for China's response to the case of a Singaporean man who pleaded guilty last week in the United States to spying for China.
[h=3]READ: How a Singaporean man went from NUS PhD student to working for Chinese intelligence in the US[/h] AdvertisementAdvertisementWang said he was not aware of the matter, but added that the United States had been "hyping up" such issues.
"I'm not aware of what you just mentioned," he said in response to the question. "But I would like to point out that lately, US law enforcement has been busy hyping up the so-called China infiltration and espionage issues to the point of paranoia."
[h=3]READ: Arrest of Dickson Yeo: Investigations have not revealed any direct threat to Singapore's security, says MHA[/h][h=3]READ: Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy cancels Dickson Yeo's PhD candidature[/h]CLOSING OF CONSULATE "LEGITIMATE AND NECESSARY"
The spokesperson's remarks came the same day that Beijing announced the US consulate in Chengdu was closed, after it ordered the facility be shut in retaliation for China being ousted from its consulate in Houston, Texas.
The closure of the Chengdu consulate is China's "legitimate and necessary response" to the "unjustified US act" of closing China's consulate in Houston, Wang told reporters.
He said that some US staff members at the Chengdu consulate "were engaged in activities outside of their capacity, interfered in China's internal affairs, and endangered China's security and interests".
Washington officials, meanwhile, have said there had been unacceptable efforts by the Chinese consulate in Houston to steal US corporate secrets and proprietary medical and scientific research.
[h=3]READ: What are the main areas of tension in the US-China relationship?[/h]Footage on state broadcaster CCTV from outside the Chengdu consulate showed the American flag being slowly lowered early Monday morning.
The last Chinese diplomats left the Houston consulate last Friday, with officials there seen loading large sacks of documents and other items onto trucks, and throwing some in bins.
US-China ties have deteriorated sharply this year over issues ranging from the coronavirus and telecoms-gear maker Huawei to China's territorial claims in the South China Sea and its clampdown on Hong Kong.
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