China denounces G7 “manipulation” after Xinjiang, Hong Kong criticism

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BEIJING: China on Monday accused the G7 of “political manipulation” after criticizing Beijing for its record on human rights in Xinjiang and Hong Kong. In a statement after a three-day summit in England, G7 leaders criticized China for abuses against minorities in the Xinjiang region and pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, while US President Joe Biden called Beijing to “start acting more responsibly in terms of international human rights standards.” The Chinese embassy in the UK reacted angrily on Monday, accusing the G7 of “interference”. “The Group of Seven (G-7) is taking advantage of the Xinjiang-related issues to engage in political manipulation and interfere in China’s internal affairs, which we strongly oppose,” a spokesperson said. from the embassy in a press release. The statement accuses the G7 of “lies, rumors and baseless accusations”. Human rights groups claim that China has rounded up around a million Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang in internment camps, which Beijing says is aimed at eradicating Islamic extremism. “We will promote our values, in particular by calling on China to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms,” read the G7 press release. At their first physical summit in nearly two years, the leaders of the seven nations announced a number of commitments on vaccinations against Covid-19, climate change, rights and trade. They also called for a new investigation in China into the origins of Covid-19 – prompting a response from the Chinese Embassy that the work must be done in a “scientific, objective and fair manner”, without accepting a new investigation. “The current epidemic is still raging around the world, and traceability work should be done by scientists around the world and should not be politicized,” the embassy said. The coronavirus first appeared in central China in late 2019, and the World Health Organization sent a team of international experts in January to probe its origins. But their long-delayed report released in March did not draw any firm conclusions, and the investigation has since come under criticism for lack of transparency and access. The G7 also announced a new infrastructure fund which President Biden said would be “much fairer” than China’s huge Belt and Road initiative. The Chinese Embassy statement complained in response that “the accusations against China on economic and trade issues contained in the statement are inconsistent with the facts and unreasonable.”

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