China yesterday defended its security crackdown in Xinjiang after French and German leaders condemned its mass detention of religious minorities in the region. The French foreign ministry on Wednesday called on China to “put an end to mass arbitrary detentions” in Xinjiang.

German chancellor Angela Merkel on the same day told lawmakers she backed the EU’s condemnation of human rights abuses in the region, and echoed calls for United Nations representatives to be allowed access to Xinjiang as soon as possible to report on the situation.

China initially denied the network of internment camps existed, but changed its position recently to say they are vocational schools that combat Islamist extremism through education and training.

China’s foreign ministry on Thursday repeated previous assertions that “Xinjiang affairs are purely China’s internal affairs.”

“Xinjiang’s local government has taken counter-terrorism and anti-extremism measures that are upright and completely beyond reproach,” foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a regular press briefing.