China is a victim of U.S. economic coercion, and G7 countries are urged to stop engaging in exclusive "small circles" and refrain from becoming accomplices to economic coercion, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Friday.

Wang made the remarks at a daily press briefing in response to recent media reports that G7 members will allegedly declare a joint response to "economic coercion" to send a signal to China.

Speaking of economic coercion, Wang said, the first country that should be condemned is perhaps the United States. He said the United States has time and again overstretched the concept of national security, abused controls on exports, and exercised discriminatory and biased practices against foreign enterprises, which has severely violated the principles of the market economy and fair competition.

Citing relevant statistics regarding U.S. sanctions against other countries, Wang noted that, as of fiscal year 2021, more than 9,400 sanctions imposed by the United States have been implemented. The United States has imposed unilateral economic sanctions on nearly 40 countries around the world, affecting nearly half of the world's population, he added.

Other members of the G7 also find it hard to escape the economic coercion and bullying of the United States, Wang said, citing the U.S. suppression of Toshiba of Japan, Siemens of Germany and Alstom of France, all of which countries are U.S. allies.

"If the G7 summit is going to put 'dealing with economic coercion' on the agenda, I suggest that they first discuss what the United States has done," said Wang. "When the Japanese side hosts the G7 summit, can it also express some injustice to the United States on behalf of other member countries that have also suffered from U.S. bullying? Or at least speak a few words of truth?"

Noting that China has always resolutely opposed economic coercion by other countries, Wang said China urges the G7 to conform to the general trend of the times of openness and inclusiveness, stop engaging in closed and exclusive "small circles," and refrain from being an accomplice to economic coercion.

(Cover: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin at a regular press briefing in Beijing, China, May 12, 2023. /Chinese Foreign Ministry)

(With input from Xinhua)