BEIJING: China on Tuesday rebuked U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s criticism of China’s Arctic activities, saying his remarks run counter to the general trend of peace and cooperation in the Arctic region.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks at a news briefing in response to Pompeo’s relevant remarks on Twitter.
The current Arctic situation is characterized by peace and cooperation, Hua said. With climate change and Arctic ice melting, the issues of environmental protection and sustainable development in the Arctic will become increasingly prominent and require cooperation of all parties concerned.
“China is one of the countries near the Arctic,” Hua said, noting this is an undeniable fact, and the trans-regional and global issues in the Arctic are closely related to China.
China attaches great importance to the sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction of Arctic nations in the Arctic, and is willing to make positive contributions to peace, stability and sustainable development in the region, Hua said. Furthermore, relevant parties should also respect the rights and freedoms of countries outside the Arctic to carry out activities in the Arctic in accordance with the law and respect the overall interests of the international community in this region, the spokesperson said.
– The Daily Mail-China Daily News exchange item
