A security guard drives away from the Chinese Consulate General in Houston on Wednesday. Photo: AP

Chinese consulates in the US, including the one in Houston, have always been dedicated to enhancing the bilateral friendship and abided by international and local laws, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a press briefing on Thursday. 

US State Secretary Mike Pompeo cited "stealing US intellectual property" as the reason for the US closure of the Chinese Consulate General in Houston.

Wang refuted Pompeo's remarks as malicious slander, adding that the closure of the consulate severely violates international laws and damages the bridge of bilateral friendship. 

At the Thursday press briefing, Wang also mentioned that in July 2018 and January 2020, the US opened Chinese diplomatic bags without permission. The Chinese side presented a solemn representation to the US. The US did not deny their actions but used technical reasons to shift the blame, Wang said.

The US' deeds violated international regulations, severely infringed upon the Chinese side's dignity and safety, and should be condemned, Wang said.

David Stilwell, the top East Asia official at the State Department, accused "China's consul general in Houston and other diplomats there of having recently engaged in questionable activity at Houston's international airport" and said "they were escorting Chinese citizens onto a chartered flight to China."

Wang said that Chinese consular officers' entry into airport restricted areas was approved by the US side and they used US-approved papers. 

Information on Chinese consular officers in the US is open and transparent. They used US-approved papers to enter US-approved restricted areas at the airport, which is legitimate and is in accordance with regulations, and the US accusations are not the truth, Wang said.  

Wang also refuted rumors surrounding the closure of the Chinese Consulate in Houston as being a response to China's failure to offer convenience to US diplomats at their consulate in Wuhan.

He noted that US diplomatic personnel returned and resumed operations at the US Consulate General in Wuhan in June, after the US closed it on its own in January. China has always provided convenience to the US consulate, Wang said. 

Global Times