Possible US Boycott of Beijing Olympics... China Strongly Opposes, Calling It a Violation of Olympic Spirit

Zhao Lijian, Spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs

China strongly opposed the United States' moves to boycott the Beijing Winter Olympics, calling it "against the spirit of the Olympics."

On the 7th, Zhao Lijian, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated, "Politicizing sports goes against the spirit of the Olympic Charter and harms the interests of athletes from all countries as well as the Olympic movement."

Spokesperson Zhao further emphasized, "The international community, including the United States Olympic Committee, will not accept this," and added, "We are confident in hosting the Beijing Winter Olympics excellently and outstandingly."

Regarding the 'genocide' claims about the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region made by the United States and other Western countries, he called them "a century-old lie" and asserted, "We have introduced the actual situation in Xinjiang at various venues."

He said, "If the United States ignores the truth and tries to attack China based on lies, it will face the resolute opposition of the Chinese people."

Meanwhile, Ned Price, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, caused a stir on the 6th (local time) during a briefing when asked whether the U.S. was consulting with allies about boycotting the Beijing Olympics, responding, "It is definitely something we want to discuss."

However, the State Department soon corrected this statement.

An anonymous senior State Department official said in a statement sent to CNBC and the political media outlet Politico, "Our position on the Olympics remains unchanged," adding, "We have not discussed and are not currently discussing a joint boycott with allies and partners."