China Calls on Foreign Embassies to Halt Pollution Data

China called on foreign embassies to stop publishing data on air pollution levels in the country, saying that the Chinese government has the sole authority to release such information.

Foreign embassies that release such data are interfering in China’s internal affairs, Wu Xiaoqing, a vice minister of environmental protection, told reporters yesterday, according to a transcript posted on the State Council Information Office’s website. Wu didn’t specifically identify the U.S., which publishes hourly pollution readings for the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou on Twitter.