China says US is trying to block its candidate in race for UN’s intellectual property agency
- China’s envoy to the United Nations says it is ‘sad that the US [has warned] some medium and small countries not to vote’ for Chinese candidate Wang Binyang
- US officials have publicly opposed Wang’s candidacy, citing concerns about Beijing’s record on intellectual property protection
Chen Xu, China’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told reporters on Wednesday that Washington had turned the director general election on March 5 and 6 into a “political game” by rallying opposition to Beijing’s runner, Wang Binying.
“The United States has no candidate of its own, yet it tries every means to block Ms Wang Binying and even makes this venture its top diplomatic agenda,” Chen said.
“It is sad that the United States has gone so far as to warn some medium and small countries not to vote for China, or they will face consequences such as weakened relations with the United States or losing their World Bank and IMF loans.”
The dispute comes amid a deepening strategic rivalry between Beijing and Washington, with China becoming increasingly assertive on the world stage as US President Donald Trump has withdrawn from international agreements and agencies, including the UN’s heritage body Unesco and the Human Rights Council.