China accuses Turkish politicians of ‘inflating the arrogance of terrorists’ in row over Xinjiang tweets

Beijing denounces opposition politicians over tweets marking deadly 1990 conflict between Uygur separatists and Chinese forces

China faces a difficult balancing act in its criticism of Turkey as it seeks to expand economic ties

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Xinjiang’s largest Muslim ethnic minorities, the Turkic-speaking Uygurs and Kazakhs, share cultural and linguistic affinities with Turkey. Photo: AFP

Published: 11:30pm, 7 Apr 2021Updated: 12:09am, 8 Apr 2021

Beijing has condemned Turkish politicians over comments about alleged human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region, a potential dilemma for China as it looks to boost economic ties with the country.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Wednesday said there were “individual Turks openly inflating the arrogance of terrorists on Twitter, challenging China’s territorial integrity, even inciting the misleading rhetoric of separatists”.

He was responding to tweets posted by two Turkish opposition party politicians – IYI Party leader Meral Aksener and Ankara mayor Mansur Yavas of the CHP – commemorating a deadly April 1990 conflict between Uygur separatists and Chinese government forces.

Zhao’s statement echoed earlier remarks by the Chinese embassy in Turkey, which led to ambassador Liu Shaobin being summoned by the Turkish government on Tuesday.

China frequently lashes out at foreign politicians and officials for criticising its treatment of Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, but it faces a tough balancing act in the case of Turkey.

IYI Party leader Meral Aksener criticised Beijing’s treatment of Uygurs. Photo: AFP

Xinjiang’s largest Muslim ethnic minorities, the Turkic-speaking Uygurs and Kazakhs, have long shared cultural and linguistic affinities with Turkey.

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