China hits back at claims of ‘secretly infiltrating’ Australia
Read original article on Channel NewsAsia or read some of the key points below;
- An investigation by Australian media claiming that China was attempting to exert its influence in the country has been slammed by Beijing, according to a report on Monday (Jun 5) by the Global Times.
- China’s foreign ministry said the claim by a joint Fairfax Media-ABC investigation that China was “secretly infiltrating” Australia is baseless, according to the report.
- “There is no basis for the related claim, which is extremely irresponsible and isn’t worth refuting,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.
- “China urges related Australian media to abide by professional ethics of journalism, discard ideological bias, and do objective and fair reports on China’s development and Sino-Australian ties,” Hua added, according to the report.
- The Australian programme which was released on Monday said Beijing is active in Australia across a wide span of areas, from Chinese-linked donations to Australian politicians to threats to Australia-based Chinese dissidents and involvement with Chinese student associations. The five-month long investigation was said to have uncovered how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was “secretly infiltrating Australia”.
