China opposes any outside interference in the affairs of a sovereign state, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a briefing on Monday, commenting on the statements of the US Embassy in Russia about uncoordinated actions on January 23.
Earlier, the US Embassy in Moscow, amid reports of illegal actions in Russia, said it was following “reports of protest actions in 38 Russian cities”. The diplomatic mission added that they “support the right of all people to peaceful protests, freedom of expression”, and the measures of the Russian authorities were allegedly “aimed at suppressing these rights”.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said last Saturday that attempts to incite radical elements would have negative consequences for bilateral relations. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that US diplomats would be summoned to the Foreign Ministry in connection with the publications.
“China strongly opposes interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state”, – the diplomat said.
Uncoordinated actions took place on Saturday in different cities of Russia. Supporters of Alexei Navalny urged people to go out to them. The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Prosecutor General’s Office have repeatedly warned about the responsibility of both the organizers and ordinary participants in uncoordinated actions.
At the same time, the Prosecutor General’s Office demanded to block the calls distributed on the Internet to come to such events, which in itself is prohibited by law. According to the president’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov, “certain provocateurs” are calling for the action, whose actions are “well understood”.