On May 7, the website of the Chinese embassy in Belgium published a statement by the spokesperson of the Embassy on the allegation that Alibaba project in Belgium is suspected of collaborating with Chinese government in espionage activities.

In the statement, China said it has noticed that recently some Belgian parliamentarians, institutions, and media have been repeating the same old story, baselessly suspecting Alibaba's Liege Airport logistics project of collaborating with the Chinese government in espionage activities, posing a threat to the privacy and national security of Belgian citizens.

The Chinese government believes that Belgium's accusations are a practice of slandering Chinese companies on trumped-up charges, and expresses its strong dissatisfaction with and firm opposition to this practice.

According to the Chinese government, China has always required Chinese enterprises to strictly abide by local laws and regulations when conducting business in foreign countries, and will not require Chinese enterprises to engage in activities that violate local laws and regulations.

The Chinese side declared that China and Belgium are all-round friendly partners and China has never posed any threat to Belgium. Cooperation between the two sides in various fields is based on mutual respect and mutual benefit, and both countries and peoples have benefited a lot from it.

The Chinese government has noticed that individual Belgian parliamentarians and institutions regard the normal exchange and cooperation between China and Belgium as a risk factor posing a threat to the country's security, and make unwarranted insinuations that Chinese institutions and personnel are engaged in so-called "espionage" activities in Belgium. Such inaccurate statements are a replica of the "China Threat Theory", which will not only mislead the general public in Belgium, but also negatively affect the image and reputation of Chinese enterprises and personnel in Belgium.

Concerning China's National Intelligence Law, the Chinese government believes that it is a common international practice to protect national security through legislation. The law stipulates that national intelligence work should be conducted following the law, respect and protect human rights, and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of individuals and organizations.

The outside world should understand the relevant content of China's National Intelligence Law comprehensively and objectively, rather than taking it out of context and interpreting it one-sidedly and incorrectly.

China believes that some people in the world are always using China's National Intelligence Law as an excuse, to exaggerate the so-called security risks of Chinese enterprises, practice double standards and confuse the public, which is in essence weaving excuses for suppressing Chinese enterprises and interfering with economic actions by political means.

China said it hopes that the relevant Belgian parliamentarians, institutions, and media will abandon their ideology and prejudice against China, take an objective and fair view of China-Belgium practical cooperation in various fields, and provide a fair and non-discriminatory investment and business environment for Chinese enterprises in Belgium.

The link of the Statement by the Spokesperson of the Embassy of China in Belgium on "Suspected Alibaba Project Involvement in Espionage": http://be.china-embassy.org/eng/sghd/t1874293.htm