Beijing accuses Pompeo of slander
China has rejected US claims that it is partly to blame for the disintegration of Venezuela, accusing Washington of slandering Beijing and “spreading chaos” in Latin America.
During a four-nation tour of South America last week, the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, pilloried Beijing for continuing to back Venezuela’s embattled president, Nicolas Maduro.
“China’s bankrolling of the Maduro regime helped precipitate and prolong the crisis in that country,” said Pompeo, who described Maduro as “a powerhungry tyrant who has brought ruin to his country and to his people”.
“I think there’s a lesson … to be learned for all of us: China and others are being hypocritical calling for non-intervention in Venezuela’s affairs. Their own financial interventions have helped destroy that country,” Pompeo added, claiming Chinese money had been used to pay off Maduro’s cronies, crush prodemocracy activists and fund ineffective social programmes.
China, which is Venezuela’s biggest foreign creditor and is estimated to have provided up to $62bn of loans since 2007, reacted angrily.
The foreign ministry spokesperson, Lu Kang, slammed Pompeo’s “groundless allegations” and “attempts to slander China and sow discord between China and Latin American countries”.
“The US has long been treating Latin America as its backyard, where it would resort to wilful use of pressure, threat or even subversion. People can tell right from wrong. I am sure Latin American countries are fully capable of telling a true friend from a false one who is ignoring rules and spreading chaos,” Lu told a press conference in Beijing yesterday, according to an official transcript.