China urges India to stop banning Chinese mobile apps under 'national security' concern

After India banned 118 Chinese mobile applications including very popular PUBG, the spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in India urged the country to stop banning such applications in the name of 'national security'. Issuing a statement regarding the same, the spokesperson said that India's move has violated the WTO (World Trade Organisation) rules which encourages open, fair, and impartial business environment. Chinese Embassy in India said in a statement, “China urges the Indian government to rectify discriminatory practices of blocking Chinese Mobile Apps with the excuse of national security which violates WTO rules, provide the open, fair and impartial business environment, and return to the right path of win-win cooperation."

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Chinese Commerce spokesperson Gao Feng said, "India’s decision to ban 118 Chinese apps is not beneficial to the Indian users nor to China’s businesses."

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224 Chinese mobile apps banned so far

On September 2, India banned 118 more Chinese mobile applications including PUBG Mobile due to data privacy concerns and stated that such applications are a threat to national security. Now, the total number of Chinese mobile applications banned in India is 224. Gao Feng said, “China-India economic and trade cooperation is mutually beneficial and win-win. It is hoped that the two countries will jointly maintain the hard-won cooperation and development situation and create an open and fair business environment for international investors and service providers, including Chinese companies.”

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Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that the Indian user's rights and interests have been first harmed followed by the Chinese business's rights and interests being compromised. Chunying also added that India's decision of banning Chinese mobile applications has not been beneficial to anyone. She also noted that the US State Department on the same day cited New Delhi’s ban and called on other countries to join India to roll out the clean network initiative.

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