China on Friday refuted the United States allegation that its action amounted to protecting terror groups from sanctions.
The country had put a technical hold on the resolution to blacklist Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror group chief Masood Azhar as its decision was in line with the rules of anti-terrorism panel at the UN.
US secretary of state Mike Pompeo on Wednesday denounced China of its “shameful hypocrisy” toward Muslims, saying China abuses more than a million Muslims at home, but on the other it protects violent Islamic terrorist groups from sanctions at the UN.
Pompeo had said it in an apparent reference to China’s move to block India’s proposal at the United Nations to designate Azhar as a global terrorist.
Without directly referring to the US, Geng said, “If a certain country accuses China of sheltering terrorists by putting technical hold, does that mean all the countries that put such holds are sheltering terrorists? If this makes sense then shall we say the country that put most hold is the biggest shelter of terrorists?”
He also said that China put forward a technical hold with a purpose of conducting in-depth assessment so as to give enough time and space for the dialogue and consultation between parties.
He further added that China is in communication with all parties to seek a settlement through dialogue and hoped that it will be a common goal of all the members of the UNSC.
When asked whether China is preparing to defend its stand in the UNSC when the latest US resolution would come up for discussion, Geng said, “China stayed in close communication with all parties on the listing issue. We will act in a responsible and a constructive manner to participate in the discussion at the committee. We also hope to work with various parties to seek a proper settlement to the issue”.
China on Thursday asked the US not to complicate the listing of Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by “forcefully moving” a resolution directly in the UNSC, undermining the authority of the UN”s anti-terrorism committee.