Christ the Redeemer Statue Lit in Belgian Colors (Photo : Getty Images)
China joined the global community on Wednesday in condemning the attack in Brussels on Tuesday, killing at least 34 people and injuring more than 200. Beijing also reiterated it is vigorously against all forms of terrorism.
“The Chinese people stand with the Belgians and the Europeans,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement. She expressed China’s willingness to enhance cooperation with Belgium and the international community to address the challenges and threats coming from terrorists.
The explosions, preceded by gunfire, damaged Belgium’s airport and a city metro station in Brussels, the capital city. The Islamic State has taken responsibility for the attacks after the recent arrest in Brussels of the 2015 Paris attacks mastermind.
But a senior French counter-terrorism expert downplayed the arrest of Salah Abdeslam, although the official acknowledged that the IS has the capability to stage mass-casualty attacks in Belgium and Europe even if national and regional governments have intensified security crackdown on terrorism.
He explained that the IS never recognized Abdeslam’s role in the Paris attacks since he did not follow the original plan to blow himself up. Rather, the official said that the Tuesday bombings were likely in response to previous police raids in Belgium that resulted in the death of two jihadists and the arrest of a third one, reported Expatica.
Hua said the Foreign Ministry and Chinese embassy in Belgium is monitoring the situation in Brussels to see if there were any Chinese nationals among the victims, reported China Daily. According to the University Hospital Saint-Luc’s emergency unit, there were no Asians that sought treatment after the attack. The hospital is near the Brussels International Airport.
If Chinese nationals plan to visit Belgium, the embassy advised them to exercise caution.
Meanwhile, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel canceled his trip to China this week to attend the Boao Forum. In a statement, Michel said, “What we feared has happened. In this time of tragedy, this black moment for our country, I appeal to everyone to remain calm but also to show solidarity.
