Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry Photo: fmprc.gov.cn

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's recent remarks on China's united front work are lies and malicious slander whose real intention is to discredit China's political system, Chinese Foreign Ministry said Thursday in response to US' recent accusations of China "spreading influence and propaganda overseas."

The US announced on Wednesday that it was designating one more Chinese organization, the National Association for China's Peaceful Unification (NACPU) under the united front Work Department, as a "foreign mission," meanwhile withdrawing from a previously-agreed deal to promote local-level cooperation between China and the US, Reuters reported Thursday. 

The move came amid Pompeo's and Deputy National Security Advisor Matthew Pottinger's latest remarks of China using the NACPU and "spreading its influence and propaganda overseas."

In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a media briefing that some US politicians have been fabricating lies and maliciously smearing China, with the real intention of discrediting China's political system, and damaging diplomatic ties between the two countries. 

The united front work aims to bring together people from different parties, organizations, and ethnic groups, and to enhance cooperation between the Communist Party of China (CPC) and those from other parties or organizations, Wang said.

China respects different cultures from all over the world, and has been committed to bridging those differences and promoting person-to-person exchanges through peaceful development and win-win cooperation. 

NACPU's US branch was founded by the Chinese people in the US and has abided by local rules, Wang explained. 

Wang added that the malicious accusations made by some US politicians are political manipulation made out of ideological prejudices, exposing the ideology of a new McCarthyism that runs counter to the interests of people from both countries.

As for the previously-agreed cooperation deal to establish China-US Governors Forum, Wang said it was first initiated by the US in 2011, and has become an important platform for local-level dialogues between China and the US. To date, the forum has been held five times since its establishment, bringing huge benefits to both sides. 

"The US' withdrawal from the agreement is against the will of its people," Wang noted, urging Pompeo and other US politicians to "stop repeatedly concocting lies and going further down the wrong path."

Wang also slammed remarks concerning the Chinese Peoples' Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), which according to Pompeo, undermined the forum and "sought to directly and malignly influence" the world in a bid to promote China's "global agenda."

"Over the years, the association has engaged in activities aimed at enhancing mutual understanding between the two peoples, while receiving widespread recognition among local communities," Wang added.

Global Times