Beijing hits back at US allies and ‘anti-China’ G-7 summit

State-backed Chinese spokesman Global Times on Monday called the Group of Seven summit an “anti-China workshop”, after Beijing summoned Japan’s envoy and reprimanded Britain in a fiery response to statements released over the weekend in Hiroshima.

A joint statement released on Saturday pointed the finger at China on issues ranging from Taiwan and maritime claims to economic coercion and human rights, highlighting tensions between Beijing and the group of wealthy countries that includes the United States. United.

“The United States is trying to weave an anti-China net in the Western world,” the Global Times said in an op-ed on Monday titled “The G7 has become an anti-China workshop.”

“This is not only a brutal interference in China’s internal affairs and smearing China, but also an undisguised need for confrontation between the camps.”

Beijing’s foreign ministry said it strongly opposes the G-7 statement and said Sunday night it had summoned Japan’s ambassador to China as part of its protest against the host Summit.

Russia, a close ally of China which was also denounced in the G7 statement on its invasion of Ukraine, said the summit was an “incubator” for anti-Russian and anti-China hysteria.

Separately, the Chinese Embassy in Britain urged London to stop slandering China on Sunday, after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Beijing posed the world’s greatest challenge to security and prosperity.

Despite Beijing’s pointed reaction, President Joe Biden has said he expects a thaw in frosty relations with China “very soon”. The Group of Seven (G7) also includes Canada, France, Germany and Italy.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong summoned the Japanese ambassador to register protests against “media hype around China-related issues”, according to a ministry statement on Sunday evening.

Sun said Japan had collaborated with other countries at the G7 summit “in joint activities and statements…to smear and attack China, grossly interfering in China’s internal affairs, violating the principles fundamentals of international law and the spirit of the four political documents between China and Japan,” referring to the 1972 China-Japan Joint Declaration.

He said Japan’s actions were detrimental to China’s sovereignty, security and development interests, and China was “strongly dissatisfied and strongly opposed to them.”

“Japan should correct its understanding of China, grasp strategic autonomy, adhere to the principles of the four China-Japan political documents, and truly promote the stable development of bilateral relations with a constructive attitude,” Sun said.

Hideo Tarumi, Japan’s ambassador to China, refuted that it is “natural” for the G-7 to refer to issues of common concern as it has done in the past and will continue to do so in the future until China changes. his behavior, according to a reading.

“China should first take positive steps to resolve these issues if it demands not to refer to them,” Tarumi told Sun, according to the reading.

Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Hirokazu Matsuno, said in a Monday morning briefing that the country’s policy toward China was consistent, would stress necessary issues and urge responsible behavior, while taking measures to address concerns and cooperate on common issues.