China has called on the US to stop using "coercion" and "threats" against its ally Cuba, after Washington indicted former leader Raul Castro on murder charges.
A US court has charged the 94-year-old former president with conspiring to kill American citizens in the 1996 crash of two planes, an incident that killed four people and sparked diplomatic tensions between Washington and the Caribbean island, the BBC reported.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly sought to exert pressure on Cuba and has openly discussed overthrowing its communist regime.
On Thursday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said the US should "stop threatening with force at every step" and that Beijing "strongly supports Cuba."
On Wednesday, Castro was charged along with five others for involvement in the downing of two planes traveling between Cuba and Florida three decades ago and was indicted on charges that carry penalties of life imprisonment or death.
The plane, which was operated by the Cuban-American dissident group Brothers in Salvation, was carrying three American citizens when it crashed, all of whom were killed.
At the time, Castro – who resigned as president in 2018 – was the head of the country's armed forces.
The incident sparked anger among Cuban exiles living in the US and has long been a source of disagreement between Washington and Havana.
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