Threat to eject China from WTO called 'talking nonsense'

A threat by a key adviser to US President Donald Trump to evict China from the World Trade Organization was dismissed as "talking nonsense" by the Foreign Ministry on Thursday.

"The WTO is a multilateral organization and is not owned by the United States," Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a news briefing in Beijing, noting that the comment "fully exposed Washington's bullying and the mentality of self-conceit".

Geng's remarks came after Kevin Hassett, chairman of Trump's Council of Economic Advisers, said in an interview that China had "misbehaved" as a member of the WTO. He suggested that a case could be made for evicting China from the organization.