In response to media reports that a businessman who has settled status in the UK was banned from entering the UK last year for allegedly posing national security risk to the UK due to his relationship with China's United Front Department, a spokesperson from the Chinese Embassy in the UK said on Friday this is a typical case of the thief crying "catch thief."

Some people in the UK are so keen on making up all kinds of "spy" stories against China. "Their purpose is to smear China and sabotage normal people-to-people exchanges between China and the UK. We strongly condemn this," the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson pointed out that the United Front led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) endeavors to bring together various political parties and people from all walks of life, ethnic groups and organizations to promote cooperation between the CPC and people who are not members of it.

The CPC and the Chinese government always believe that different civilizations should respect and learn from each other with an open mind, work for harmonious coexistence, win-win cooperation and peaceful development of all countries, and promote normal people-to-people exchanges and friendship with other countries. Non-interference in each other's internal affairs is an important principle upheld by Chinese diplomacy. The Chinese side is fair and square, above-board and beyond reproach, the spokesperson said.

Some on the British side repeatedly use China's United Front work as a pretext to accuse China of wrongdoing, discredit China's political system, and undermine normal exchanges and cooperation between China and the UK. Such sinister plots will never succeed, the spokesperson noted.

"We urge the relevant parties in the UK to immediately stop creating trouble, stop spreading the 'China threat' narrative, and stop undermining normal exchanges between China and the UK," the spokesperson said.

The Global Times Annual Conference 2025, themed "Moving forward in Partnership: Resonance of Values between China and the World," is held in Beijing on Saturday. Experts and scholars engaged in discussions on the topic, "Exploring the path of great power relations: differences and consensus." Tu Xinquan, dean of China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics, said that while the US was once a key driver of the global trade system, at present, the "dual-core drive" of China and the US is more beneficial for the world economy. 

Economic and trade relations can be seen as the foundation of China-US relations and serve as the ballast for their stable development. Tu pointed out that the multilateral trade system in the past operated with the US market at its core. However, with the US market and economy facing problems, the core in the past can no longer single-handedly drive the global economy. The China-US "dual-core drive" is more beneficial for the development of the world economy. In Tu's view, China's role in the global economy is still primarily that of a producer, and its position as a consumer has not yet been fully demonstrated.

Tu emphasized that the key issue in the global trade system lies in how to coordinate the conflicting economic interests of different producers. To address this, he proposed two approaches: First, to create a larger international market through the inclusion of new members, technological advancements, and institutional improvements; Second, to foster a more interdependent, "mutually embedded" relationship among producers.