China protests EU sanctions on Chinese firms over Russia

China lodged a formal protest with the European Union after the bloc included additional Chinese companies in its 21st package of sanctions against Russia, accusing Brussels of unfairly targeting Chinese businesses and harming bilateral relations, the state-run Global Times reported on Saturday.

China on Friday placed 14 EU entities on its export control list in a tit-for-tat move, a day after the bloc sanctioned 14 companies from mainland China and Hong Kong, according to the Commerce Ministry.

A spokesperson for the Chinese mission to the European Union said Beijing expressed "strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition" to the sanctions, which were adopted by the EU as part of its latest measures against Russia over the war in Ukraine.

"China upholds an objective and just position on the Ukraine crisis, remains committed to promoting peace talks, and has played a constructive role in advancing a political settlement of the crisis," the spokesperson said.

Beijing rejected what it described as attempts by the EU to shift blame onto China over the conflict, saying it "firmly opposes the EU's unwarranted listing and sanctioning of Chinese companies and citizens."

China urged the EU to "immediately correct its wrongdoing, eliminate the egregious impact, and safeguard the overall interests of China-EU relations with concrete actions."