World does not need 'G1', ministry says

Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin speaks during a regular news briefing in Beijing, April 19, 2023. (Photo/fmprc.gov.cn)

The world does not need a "Group of One" dictating to the rest of it, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin warned on Wednesday in denouncing a G7 statement that grossly interfered with China's internal affairs.

Speaking at a regular news conference in Beijing, Wang added that it is dangerous to seek the so-called "solidarity" of a few at the cost of a divided world.

On the same day, Liu Jinsong, director of the ministry's Department of Asian Affairs, met with Koizumi Tsutomu, chief minister of the Japanese embassy in China, to make stern representations with the Japanese side.

Liu expressed serious concerns and strong dissatisfaction over negative moves concerning China during the G7 foreign ministers' meeting, which concluded on Tuesday in Japan.

Wang said, "If the G7 is really opposed to hegemonism and coercion, then it should reflect on itself and make sure that invasions similar to those in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria will never happen again."

The bloc should also reject long-arm jurisdiction and unilateral sanctions and say no to any policy that puts a certain country first at the expense of others, he said. Wang noted that the world today does not need a "G1" that lets a certain country give all the orders nor does it need a so-called "alliance of shared values".

"There is only one order and one system in the world. That is, the international order based on international law and the international system with the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter at its core," Wang said.

Wang said that in today's world, it is more important that countries respect each other despite their differences in ideology, values and development level, and they should cooperate to build a global community with a shared future for mankind.

The spokesman also noted that the real status quo of the Taiwan question is that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same China. "Taiwan is part of China and China's sovereignty and territorial integrity has never been split," he said.

Wang said that some countries claim that they follow the one-China policy, but in the meantime refer to the Chinese side's efforts to oppose "Taiwan independence" separatist activities as changing the status quo.

"Such an act encourages the provocations of 'Taiwan independence' separatists and hinders China's reunification and creates a peaceful secession, which completely deviates from the one-China principle," he said.