The Chinese Embassy in London has warned defending Hong Kong protesters will “bring disaster to Britain” after a person was overwhelmed up inside China’s Manchester consulate.
In a video launched by the embassy on Thursday, a spokesman made essentially the most direct commerce menace to the UK since footage confirmed Hong Kong protester Bob Chan being pulled contained in the Manchester consulate grounds and overwhelmed up by its workers on 16 October.
The consul-general was noticed pulling Mr Chan’s hair and informed Sky News final week it was his “duty” as he stated Mr Chan was “abusing my country, my leader”.
Thursday’s clip was entitled: “Online press conference on the violent harassment of the Chinese consulate general in Manchester.”
There was no media current and no questions have been taken.
The video has been met with indignation by MPs and human rights campaigners within the UK.
In it, the spokesman warned: “Providing shelter to the Hong Kong independent elements will only, in the end, bring disaster to Britain.”
He stated he needed to “remind” folks of the Aesop’s Fable concerning the farmer and the snake “where the farmer showed sympathy to the snake but finally got bitten by the snake”.
He spoke at size about how a lot the UK depends on China as its third-largest buying and selling accomplice and “number one source of imports”.
“British exports to China also increased sharply so we see this relationship to be win-win and mutually beneficial,” he stated.
“China attaches great importance to the relationship with the UK and we are willing to develop further co-operation with the UK on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit.
“This is nice for either side and good for the world.”
He added {that a} “few” folks with “selfish motivations” are attempting to impress confrontation between China and the UK which “is dangerous and bad for both sides”, he stated.
Alicia Kearns, the brand new chair of the international affairs committee, stated the threats have been sadly to be anticipated from China.
“The lack of contrition from CCP (the Chinese Communist Party) over what was a shocking assault is concerning, if not wholly surprising,” she stated.
“It is, sadly, consistent with Beijing’s aggressive foreign policy under Xi and why we have seen diplomatic relations with China become increasingly strained across the world.”
Human rights campaigner Luke de Pulford, govt director of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, stated the UK authorities must stamp down on China’s commerce threats and human rights abuses.
He informed Sky News: “What looks more like a snake?
“Hong Kongers who’ve been pressured out of their houses for standing up for democracy, or the Chinese Communist Party which metes out genocide, tears up treaties, whose diplomats beat up protesters, and which operates unlawful police stations to persecute dissidents?
“I know which I’d prefer, and the government needs to make plain their displeasure at China’s brazen hubris now.”
The authorities, underneath Liz Truss, has stated it should wait till a police investigation into the Manchester consulate incident concludes earlier than deciding what to do with these workers concerned.
Rishi Sunak, who took over as PM on Tuesday, has not but made a remark concerning the incident.
Other MPs, each Tory and Labour, have referred to as for the consul basic concerned within the assault to be despatched straight again to China.
Conservative MP Sir Iain Duncan Smith, who’s sanctioned by China, stated any Chinese consulate workers concerned within the assault ought to be expelled, made to apologise and made persona non grata.
He stated it ought to be a political choice and the federal government mustn’t await the police investigation to complete as there may be video proof, some which was put out by the Chinese embassy.
Source: information.sky.com”