A high-ranking official in China has criticized Secretary of State John Kerry for calling to expanded Internet freedom in the country.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China's affairs must be decided by Chinese people based on their own national condition.
She added that using methods like this to push China in a direction of change is rather naive.
According to Politico, during a meeting in Beijing on Saturday, prominent Chinese bloggers had asked Kerry to put pressure on the Chinese government to expand Internet freedoms.
Kerry insisted that he has urged Chinese leaders to do so in the past, adding that the increased freedoms would likely result in increased economic productivity.
Chunying also said the scope of Kerry's meeting with the bloggers could have been broader, taking aim at the United States with a reference to former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, the report added.
