ISTANBUL

China urged the UK on Tuesday to earnestly protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese nationals.

It expressed "grave concern" about the arrest and prosecution of the nationals.

“For quite some time, the UK has repeatedly hyped up the so-called 'China spies' and ‘China’s cyber attacks,’” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a news conference.

Wenbin stressed that the accusations are "groundless and unacceptable vilification."

“China firmly opposes such despicable, politically-driven ploys in the name of legal justice and national security," he said.

British police charged three men with aiding Hong Kong's foreign intelligence service under the UK's National Security Act, the country’s Counter Terrorism Policing reported Monday.

"The foreign intelligence service to which the above charges relate is that of Hong Kong," it said.