China firmly opposes Britain's exclusion of Chinese wind turbines, urges fair business environment

BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) -- China has expressed its firm opposition to the British government's exclusion of a Chinese company from its offshore wind projects under the pretext of so-called "national security," a commerce ministry spokesperson said Tuesday.

The remarks came in response to a media query regarding a recent statement on the British parliament website, which stated that the government does not support the use of wind turbines manufactured by China's Ming Yang Smart Energy in British offshore wind projects.

Noting the relevant statement, the spokesperson pointed out that excluding Chinese products on the grounds of "national security" runs counter to the open and free market principles that Britain has long championed.

Such a move is not conducive to Britain's own economic development and the well-being of its people, and will have a negative impact on pragmatic bilateral economic and trade cooperation, the spokesperson said, emphasizing China's resolute opposition to it.

The spokesperson recalled that during British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's visit to China in January this year, he explicitly stated that Britain is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in various fields, including trade, investment, finance and environmental protection, in order to boost mutual economic growth and deliver benefits to both peoples.

China hopes that the British government will provide a fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises, take concrete actions to advance pragmatic economic and trade cooperation, and promote the healthy development of bilateral relations, the spokesperson said.