U.S. attempt to smear China-Caribbean ties doomed to fail: FM spokesperson

BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. despicable attempt to smear and attack China-Caribbean relations and cooperation is doomed to fail, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.

Spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks in response to recent comments by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding Caribbean countries' selection of vendors and contractors for infrastructure projects.

Speaking at a daily press briefing, Lin said the remarks constituted a malicious attack on China and aimed at smearing the country and undermining its relations with relevant nations, revealing both ideological prejudice and a disregard for fundamental norms of international relations.

"China expresses strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition," said the spokesperson.

Lin emphasized that Caribbean countries have the right to independently choose friendly cooperation partners and do not need any country to lecture.

China's relations with Caribbean countries are in line with the fundamental and long-term interests of both sides, Lin said, pointing out that the despicable attempt of the United States to attack and smear China-Caribbean relations and cooperation will not succeed.