WASHINGTON: Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday that a long-awaited UN report reaffirmed the US view that China is committing “genocide” against the Uyghurs and called for Beijing to be held responsible.
Blinken said that the United States “welcomes” the “important” report, released minutes before UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet — who was strongly criticized by Washington for a recent visit to China — left office.
“This report deepens and reaffirms our grave concern regarding the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity that PRC government authorities are perpetrating against Uyghurs,” he said in a statement, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
“We will continue to hold the PRC to account and call on the PRC to release those unjustly detained, account for those disappeared, and allow independent investigators full and unhindered access to Xinjiang, Tibet and across the PRC,” he said.
The landmark UN report detailed a string of rights violations including torture and forced labor against Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim minorities, infuriating Beijing.
The report said China may have committed “crimes against humanity” but stopped short of calling its treatment of the Uyghurs “genocide,” an accusation made since early 2021 by the United States and since embraced by legislatures in several other Western nations.
![]()
US says China must be held to ‘account’ on Uyghur ‘genocide’ after UN report
Short Url
https://arab.news/bvj9b
US says China must be held to ‘account’ on Uyghur ‘genocide’ after UN report
- Report detailed a string of rights violations against Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim minorities
- It said China may have committed “crimes against humanity”
China’s Xi urges ‘central role’ of UN in call with Brazil’s Lula
BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping called on countries to protect the “central role” of the United Nations in international affairs, urging his Brazilian counterpart on Friday to help safeguard international norms, state media reported.
The comments come after US President Donald Trump unveiled plans for his new “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum.
Although originally meant to oversee Gaza’s rebuilding, the board’s charter does not seem to limit its role to the Palestinian territory and has sparked concerns Trump wants to rival the United Nations.
While China and Brazil have both been invited to join Trump’s new grouping, neither has confirmed participation.
Xi told President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva during their Friday morning phone call that in the current “tumultuous” international situation, China and Brazil “are constructive forces in maintaining world peace and stability,” according to a readout published by state broadcaster CCTV.
“They should stand firmly on the right side of history... and jointly uphold the central role of the United Nations and international fairness and justice,” Xi said.
European leaders have expressed doubts over Trump’s norm-busting proposal, with some viewing it as an attempt to potentially sideline or even replace the United Nations.
While in Davos, Switzerland, Trump said that once complete, the board “can do pretty much whatever we want,” while adding that “we’ll do it in conjunction with the United Nations.”
Beijing’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that “no matter how the international situation changes, China firmly upholds the international system with the United Nations at its core.”
Brazil has also expressed skepticism about the Board of Peace, saying it could represent “a revocation” of the United Nations.
Lula’s special adviser Celso Amorim told Brazilian media that “we cannot consider a reform of the UN made by one country.”
During Trump’s global tariff onslaught last year, China and Brazil sought to present their countries as staunch defenders of the multilateral trading system.
Xi told Lula in August they could set an example of “self-reliance” for emerging powers.
China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, engages with the international body even as it has objected to what it terms internal interference.
Advocacy groups like Human Rights Watch have accused China of seeking to undermine the United Nations by reducing contributions to the organization’s rights budgets, establishing an alternative international mediation body and blocking activists from UN events.
The comments come after US President Donald Trump unveiled plans for his new “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum.
Although originally meant to oversee Gaza’s rebuilding, the board’s charter does not seem to limit its role to the Palestinian territory and has sparked concerns Trump wants to rival the United Nations.
While China and Brazil have both been invited to join Trump’s new grouping, neither has confirmed participation.
Xi told President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva during their Friday morning phone call that in the current “tumultuous” international situation, China and Brazil “are constructive forces in maintaining world peace and stability,” according to a readout published by state broadcaster CCTV.
“They should stand firmly on the right side of history... and jointly uphold the central role of the United Nations and international fairness and justice,” Xi said.
European leaders have expressed doubts over Trump’s norm-busting proposal, with some viewing it as an attempt to potentially sideline or even replace the United Nations.
While in Davos, Switzerland, Trump said that once complete, the board “can do pretty much whatever we want,” while adding that “we’ll do it in conjunction with the United Nations.”
Beijing’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that “no matter how the international situation changes, China firmly upholds the international system with the United Nations at its core.”
Brazil has also expressed skepticism about the Board of Peace, saying it could represent “a revocation” of the United Nations.
Lula’s special adviser Celso Amorim told Brazilian media that “we cannot consider a reform of the UN made by one country.”
During Trump’s global tariff onslaught last year, China and Brazil sought to present their countries as staunch defenders of the multilateral trading system.
Xi told Lula in August they could set an example of “self-reliance” for emerging powers.
China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, engages with the international body even as it has objected to what it terms internal interference.
Advocacy groups like Human Rights Watch have accused China of seeking to undermine the United Nations by reducing contributions to the organization’s rights budgets, establishing an alternative international mediation body and blocking activists from UN events.
Latest updates
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.