Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin Photo: mfa.gov.cn

China firmly opposes the unreasonable detention, interrogation and deportation of Chinese students by the US which has fabricated groundless accusations against the Chinese students, and urges the US to translate its statements of welcoming Chinese students into concrete action, Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday in response to the charges against and the deportation of Chinese students upon their entry into the US. 

Through stealing a Chinese student's educational application materials, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently arrested and filed a lawsuit against the Chinese overseas student studying in the US under a so-called visa fraud charge. 

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) detained, interrogated and subsequently deported three Chinese students upon their entry into the US without evidence or basis. 

In response to these incidents, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during the press conference on Monday that the US has unreasonably detained, interrogated and repatriated Chinese students without reason, and has even fabricated baseless accusations against them. These serve as politically motivated maneuver aimed at suppressing and persecuting Chinese students, which China firmly opposes. 

According to Wang, cultural exchanges serve as the social foundation of China-US relations, and the academic, educational and scientific exchanges make up for the vital components of the cultural exchange between the two sides. 

However, despite the US consistently voicing its support for educational and cultural exchange between the two countries and the public welcoming of Chinese students, it in practice continues the previous administration's bad faith approach which includes using national security concerns to restrict or suppress Chinese students studying or researching in the US, Wang said. 

These actions seriously harmed the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese students studying in the US and severely undermined the atmosphere of normal people-to-people exchanges and educational cooperation between China and the US, Wang noted. 

Wang stressed that China urges the US to translate its statements of welcoming Chinese students into concrete actions, revoke the biased and discriminatory Presidential Proclamation 10043, and stop using national security as an excuse to suppress Chinese overseas students studying in the US. 

China will continue to take necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese nationals and also advises Chinese students studying in the US to be vigilant over potential safety and political risks, Wang added.

Global Times