China firmly opposes certain Western countries interfering in China's internal affairs, smearing and undermining Hong Kong's rule of law, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Hong Kong's High Court on Tuesday sentenced 45 people to jail over subversion in accordance with the "Hong Kong National Security Law", on which certain Western countries made some comments and criticisms.
On the issue, Li Jian, the spokesman, said "Hong Kong is a society under the rule of law. To abide by the law and bring lawbreakers to justice is a basic principle. No one should be allowed to use 'democracy' as a pretext to engage in unlawful activities and escape justice. Certain Western countries while forgetting the fact that they uphold their own national security through relevant judicial procedures, have made unwarranted criticisms over the fair enforcement of the national security law by Hong Kong's court. This severely violates and tramples on the spirit of the rule of law."
"The Central Government firmly supports the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) in safeguarding national security and punishing all acts that undermine national security in accordance with the law, and firmly opposes the interference of certain Western countries in China's internal affairs and their attempt to smear and undermine Hong Kong's rule of law by using relevant case," Lin said.
China firmly opposes some Western countries interfering in Hong Kong affairs
Several French politicians have raised concerns over the United States' decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change, saying this decision may worsen the current climate situation and intensify global tensions.
U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday announcing the country's intention to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. The move means the U.S. will withdraw from the climate accord for the second time, with Trump having previously exited the country from the agreement during his first term in office.
Laurent Fabius, President of the Constitutional Council of France, spoke to China Global Television Network (CGTN) about his surprise at Trump's decision, which he felt was not only unexpected but also poorly timed, given the urgent situation with the wildfires in Los Angeles.
"We clearly understand that when we see the disasters happening everywhere, if we don't fight climate change, it will only get worse. And I imagine you will be struck, as I am, by the fact that at the very moment when terrible wildfires are raging in Los Angeles, largely due to climate disruption, it is still quite surprising, to put it diplomatically, that this is the moment when President Trump decides to pull out of the Paris Agreement, contrary to what all scientists are saying. It's not a matter of goodwill or bad will; it's a reality of science, that's all," said Fabius.
Jean-Pierre Raffarin, former Prime Minister of France, echoed similar concerns, stating that the Trump administration's decision ignores the collective interests of the global community and will likely exacerbate tensions worldwide.
"I believe that withdrawing from agreements is something dangerous because we need more agreements, and if we start destroying the agreements we have built, we risk making the world even more tense. I believe that we must think about the planet and our community of shared destiny, and it is very dangerous to think that we can solve problems on our own. When we solve problems on our own, we are solving them against others. In fact, we must solve them together, and we will only address issues like climate change today by working together," he emphasized.
French politicians raise concerns over Trump's withdrawal from Paris Agreement