Russia criticizes US for trying to 'make a scandal' out of HK

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has criticized Washington for meddling in China's internal matters, stating that the American bid to "make a scandal" over Hong Kong legislation is undermining US credibility vis-a-vis other countries.

"The issues that [the US] is now hyping concerning Hong Kong are related to the internal affairs of China... I don’t think that the US's attempts to create some kind of scandalous situations out of this issue would add credibility to the dialogue with the United States on any other topics... What the US is now saying about China does not surprise us, although this is totally unprecedented," the minister said, Sputnik News reports.

Chinese state network, CGTN, reported today the remarks were welcomed by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian, who told reporters that  Hong Kong is an inalienable part of China and the national security legislation for the HKSAR is purely China's internal affair that allows no foreign interference.

Lavrov's comment comes amid a war of words between Beijing and Washington, as US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien claimed that the new law, introduced by mainland China, violates Hong Kong's autonomy.

In response to the claims, Beijing accused the US of interference in China's domestic affairs, promising to retaliate.

The legislation, proposed amid rising tension in the region, bans secessionist and subversive activity and, according to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, should be implemented without delay.