The WeChat Official Account "Chinese Embassy in the UK" reported on April 16 that the spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the UK answered reporters' questions regarding the issue of British Steel.

Question: Recently, various comments have emerged domestically in the UK regarding the British government's takeover of British Steel. Some politicians take the opportunity to attack all Chinese enterprises and the Chinese government. What is your comment on this?

Spokesperson of the Embassy: The anti-China remarks made by some individual politicians in the UK are extremely absurd and laughable, reflecting their arrogance, ignorance, and distorted mentality. Regarding the issue of British Steel, I would like to state several basic facts.

First, the J敬业 Group is a private Chinese enterprise that has invested in commercial operations in the UK based on market principles and independently operates its business.

Second, as we all know, British Steel had been losing money for years before it was acquired by the J敬业 Group in 2020 and entered bankruptcy liquidation in 2019. After the J敬业 Group took over, it injected substantial funds into British Steel, keeping the company operational until now. If not for this Chinese enterprise, workers at British Steel might have faced unemployment risks long ago.

Third, according to the UK government's "Net Zero" strategy, steel companies using iron ore for steelmaking need to achieve "net zero emissions" by 2035. In this regard, all British steel enterprises, including British Steel, are negotiating with the UK government to find decarbonization transformation paths. The Port Talbot steel plant in Wales shut down its blast furnaces in July 2024. It is understandable that British Steel plans to shut down its blast furnaces and build electric arc furnaces as part of normal decision-making, and its negotiations with the UK government regarding investment in transformation are also reasonable.

Fourth, generally speaking, Chinese enterprises operate legally and steadily in the UK, making positive contributions to the local economy. According to incomplete statistics, Chinese enterprises in the UK contribute more than 115 billion pounds to the UK economy and create nearly 60,000 jobs.

Fifth, under the current situation where the US wields tariff sticks against countries including the UK, vigorously promoting unilateralism, protectionism, and trade bullying, those politicians in the UK do not criticize the US but instead maliciously slander and blacken the Chinese government and Chinese enterprises. What exactly are they aiming to achieve?

Sixth, any behavior that politicizes commercial issues and engages in malicious hype will damage the confidence of Chinese enterprises in investing in the UK and harm Sino-UK economic and trade cooperation. We urge the UK government to follow the principle of fairness, justice, and non-discrimination, and effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises in the UK. At the same time, we hope that the UK government will continue to negotiate with the J敬业 Group and actively seek solutions acceptable to all parties. We will continue to monitor the development of the situation.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7494061966063862326/

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