FILE PHOTO - Hua Chunying, spokeswoman of China's Foreign Ministry, speaks at a regular news conference in Beijing, China, January 6, 2016. REUTERS/Jason Lee

BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Thursday that the United States had no right to criticize its policies on ethnic minorities, after U.S. lawmakers called for sanctions on Chinese officials responsible for human rights abuses against Muslims in China’s Xinjiang region.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying made the comment at a regular news briefing in Beijing.