Beijing: Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has weighed into the row over China's Pacific aid program, criticising loans that "impose onerous debt burdens on regional governments".

China lodged a diplomatic complaint on Wednesday, labelling an attack on its Pacific aid program by Turnbull government minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells as "full of ignorance and prejudice".

International Development Minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells has been lashed by the Chinese government for saying their Pacific aid program was useless. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Fierravanti-Wells, international development minister, earlier accused China of building useless buildings, white elephants and "roads to nowhere" in the Pacific.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang responded by saying China's aid program had "brought real benefits to local people" and had been welcomed by Pacific governments.