Chinese Embassy in the US Photo: VCG

The Chinese government has never required, and will never require, Chinese companies to collect or provide data, information or intelligence located in foreign countries for the Chinese government in ways that violate local laws, Liu Chang, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in the US, told the Global Times in a written response on Wednesday.

Liu made the remarks in response to an inquiry from the Global Times regarding reports that US administration officials claimed that Chinese shipping company COSCO had used concealed equipment to "spy on military communications near the coastlines of target nations, including the US."

China consistently opposes groundless smears against it by hyping so-called "Chinese intelligence gathering overseas," Liu said.