Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated today that "Comrade Raúl Castro is a revered Cuban revolutionary leader who is widely respected internationally."

She noted that Beijing took note of the responses from Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez, who characterized the measure as a "pathetic circus."

China opposes the abusive use of judicial measures to exert pressure on Cuba and firmly supports the Caribbean nation in defending its national sovereignty and resisting external interference, Mao affirmed.

Furthermore, she urged Washington to immediately end the blockade and any other form of coercion and pressure against the island, as well as to stop violating the right of the Cuban people to live and develop.

The statements emerged after a Miami judge issued a new arrest warrant related to the February 1996 downing of two aircraft belonging to the organization Brothers to the Rescue.

Announced by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, the measure adds to proceedings previously initiated in the United States against the historical Cuban leader and other Cuban citizens over those events.

Cuba rejected the federal indictment linked to the same case last May, denouncing at the time that Washington lacks jurisdiction and legitimacy to prosecute events related to the defense of national sovereignty.

Havana's official position maintains that the aircraft involved repeatedly violated Cuban airspace, recalling that national authorities spent years submitting complaints regarding those incursions to U.S. agencies and the International Civil Aviation Organization.

According to Cuban authorities, the island's actions were protected under the right to self-defense, the protection of aerial sovereignty, and the principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter and the 1944 Chicago Convention.

The Cuban government has denounced such actions as part of the policy of hostility maintained by Washington against the Caribbean nation and attempts to legitimize the continuation of the economic, commercial, and financial blockade enforced for more than six decades.