China, which had previously remained silent on South Korea’s state of emergency and impeachment crisis, responded strongly when President Yoon Suk Yeol mentioned Chinese spies in a public address, saying they were “deeply surprised and dissatisfied.”
During a regular press briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said they are closely monitoring the situation and find the South Korean side’s remarks shocking and disappointing.
Mao emphasized that while China refrains from commenting on South Korea’s internal affairs, it firmly opposes South Korea’s attempt to link domestic issues to Chinese factors and exaggerates alleged Chinese espionage. This undermines normal economic and trade cooperation. “Such actions are detrimental to the healthy and stable development of China-South Korea relations,” she added.
She also mentioned that the Chinese government consistently requires its citizens abroad to comply with local laws and noted that the individual cases cited by South Korea have not yet concluded. Mao urged South Korea to handle cases involving Chinese citizens fairly and to keep China informed about the status of these cases to ensure the safety and legitimate rights of the Chinese citizens involved.
Previously, the Chinese Foreign Ministry had avoided commenting on South Korea’s state of emergency, maintaining that it was an internal matter. However, they appear to have strongly objected to Yoon’s direct mention of China on this occasion.
Earlier that day, Yoon stated in his public address, “In June, three Chinese individuals were caught using a drone to photograph a U.S. aircraft carrier docked in Busan. Last month, a Chinese man in his 40s was apprehended for filming the National Intelligence Service with a drone.” He added, “To prevent such incidents, I attempted to amend the espionage provisions of the criminal code, but the major opposition party is firmly obstructing these efforts.”
Yoon also asked, “What would happen if a destructive faction were to take control of this country?” He warned that crucial future growth engines, including the nuclear power and semiconductor industries, would be crippled and that Chinese solar facilities would devastate forests nationwide.
In response, Mao defended China’s practices by stating that global market demands, technological innovation, and fair competition drive the development of green industries in China. She also emphasized China’s contributions to improving global environmental governance in response to climate change.
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