Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian Photo: fmprc.gov.cn

 


Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on Monday said that he is not surprised by the revelation that US politicians are using Xinjiang-related issues to undermine China's interests, as "it is not the first time they have spoken their minds." Zhao added that among all the lies, the so-called genocide claims against Xinjiang are "a classic piece of work of the US' lying diplomacy."

Media have reported that in 2021, Sheila Carey, consul at the US Consulate General in Guangzhou, and her colleague Andrew Chira told guests at a reception that the US government hoped its businessmen would "understand" that using the Xinjiang issue to hype up so-called forced labor, genocide, and human rights abuses is a "tug of war" with China, and an "effective tool" to achieve the ultimate goal of getting China "completely under control."

Commenting on the remarks, Zhao at Monday's press briefing urged the US to give a sound explanation, noting that if the information is true, then "I'm not surprised. Because this is not the first time that US officials have 'revealed their thoughts,'" he said.

Counting similar remarks made by US officials, Zhao brought up a video clip of Lawrence Wilkerson, a retired US Army Colonel and former chief of staff to US Secretary of State Colin Powell, giving a speech in August 2018.

If the CIA wanted to destabilize China, that would be the best way to do it - to form unrest, and join with the Uygurs in putting pressure on China internally rather than from outside, Wilkerson said in the video.

Wilkerson's remarks echoed comments from former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo in a lecture in April 2019. The CIA "lied, cheated, stole," he said, and "had entire training courses" devoted to such tactics. 

Similarly, Sibel Edmonds, a former FBI translator, admitted in 2015 that they never care about people or any ethnic minority in Xinjiang. They only want to use them to foment unrest.

Among these sayings is the "lie of the century" concocted by US politicians and a classic piece of work of its "lying diplomacy" - the so-called genocide in Xinjiang, Zhao said.

"The current ethnic unity, social stability and economic prosperity in Xinjiang are the best and most powerful rebuke to the lies spread by the US. Their attempt to undermine the harmony and stability of Xinjiang and contain China's development will never succeed," Zhao said.

Global Times