China upset by U.S. Republican platform on South China Sea, Tibet

[July 21, 2016]  BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Foreign Ministry on Thursday urged the U.S. Republican Party to stop making "groundless accusations" against China in its party platform, which says China practices cultural genocide in Tibet and has ludicrous claims in the South China Sea.

China's government has generally avoided making direct comments about the election, wary of being seen to interfere, though in April Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei called Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump an "irrational type" due to his tariffs proposal on imported Chinese goods.

In an English-language statement issued via the official Xinhua news agency on Thursday, the ministry said the Republican platform contained "accusations about China on issues related to Taiwan, Tibet, trade and the South China Sea" and are an interference in China's internal affairs.

"All political parties in the United States should view China's development in an objective and rational manner and correctly understand the issues that emerge in bilateral ties," the ministry said.

"We hope relevant parties stop their groundless accusations against China and interference in China's domestic affairs and contribute more to bilateral trust and cooperation," it added.

The platform, adopted on Monday, says China has been asserting "preposterous" claims to the South China Sea to distract its people from economic problems, practices "cultural genocide" in Tibet and Xinjiang, and reaffirms a commitment to sell weapons to self-ruled Taiwan.

Chinese dredging vessels are purportedly seen in the waters around Mischief Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea in this still image from video taken by a P-8A Poseidon surveillance aircraft provided by the United States Navy May 21, 2015. U.S. Navy/Handout via Reuters/File Photo

China's foreign ministry said promoting stable growth in relations serves the interests of both countries and the peace and development of the Asia-Pacific region and the world, and "both sides should adhere to this right direction".

Chinese officials admit to knowing little about Trump compared with his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, who had extensive dealings with China when she was secretary of state.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Michael Perry)

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