China says US proposes postponing diplomatic, security dialogue

BEIJING - China reiterated on Wednesday that it is the United States that had proposed the postponement of the second round of their Diplomatic and Security Dialogue instead of the other way around.

Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for China's Foreign Ministry, refuted recent US media reports that a US official claimed China had proposed putting off the dialogue.

"Such an argument completely distorts the fact with ulterior motives and is extremely irresponsible," she said. "The Chinese side expresses strong dissatisfaction."

The fact is the United States recently made a proposal to China that it hoped to postpone the dialogue, Hua said.

"We demand the parties concerned stop fabricating and spreading rumors," she said.

On Tuesday, Hua said China and the United States had previously agreed in principle to hold the dialogue in mid-October, while the United States recently proposed putting it off.