BEIJING, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese defense spokesperson on Thursday made a statement responding to the United States Department of Defense's claim that China declined a U.S. proposal for a phone conversation over the civilian unmanned airship incident.

The U.S. side recently proposed a telephone conversation between the Chinese defense minister and the U.S. defense secretary to communicate over the incident of China's civilian unmanned airship, said Tan Kefei, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense.

The United States persisted in using force to attack China's civilian unmanned airship, a move that seriously violated international practices and set a very bad precedent, Tan said.

Given that the U.S. side's irresponsible and erroneous move has failed to create a proper atmosphere for dialogue and exchanges between the two militaries, China did not accept the U.S. proposal for a phone call between the two defense chiefs, Tan said.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs had made a public statement regarding the nature of the incident, he said, adding that China reserves the right to take necessary measures to deal with similar situations. Enditem

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