China has consistently denied accusations of forced labor and other human rights abuses in Xinjiang. The story in Brussels is we're ready to sign an investment treaty with China," European lawmaker Guy Verhofstadt said on Twitter Wednesday. Similarly, the EU has maintained that the agreement provides a "lever" to press China on forced labor. Under the agreement, China has committed to "work towards" the ratification of outstanding International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions against forced labor. The Xinhua report made no mention of forced labor.

Source: CNN December 31, 2020 05:26 UTC