China accuses US of ‘harassing’ Chinese students and trying to turn them into spies
- ‘At least’ eight Chinese nationals harassed, interrogated and even deported at Dulles airport in recent months: foreign ministry
- Spokesman Wang Wenbin urges Washington to stop using national security as a pretext to restrict visiting students
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Wang said US law enforcement officials also made “unabashed” attempts to induce and sway some of the students among the recent cases. “[That] directly threatens China’s national security,” he said.
Wang characterised the US actions as unprincipled and “discriminatory moves” under the guise of law enforcement, with a “strong ideological bias”.
He was responding to a question about recent accounts from Chinese nationals about their treatment when trying to enter the US to study.
The questioner, from the state-owned China News Service, said media had reported that students had been being repeatedly quizzed by US officials about their political backgrounds and research activities, and that some had been told their entry was conditional on providing insider information about the Chinese government.
