Amid widespread criticism on the matter of Uyghur population, China on Tuesday said that the EU observers are free to visit Xinjiang to “truly understand” the situation.

The statement came after the European Union told China to let its independent observers into Xinjiang, binding human rights to future trade and investment deals with Beijing.

In response, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that the observers are “welcome” to visit the area “to truly understand the real situation and not rely on hearsay.”

“The EU has raised their desire to visit Xinjiang, China has already agreed and is willing to make arrangements,” he told reporters.

Also read: United States puts block on Chinese products from Uighur ‘forced labor’

However, the spokesperson did not confirm that EU observers would be allowed to travel freely in the region. Although, China has refused to grant independent entries in the past.

Before this, Beijing also invited Arsenal footballer Mesut Ozil to visit Xinjiang, to see the situation of the region himself after he criticised Muslim countries for failing to speak up for the Uyghur Muslims.

Notably, China calls its Xinjiang camps as vocational training centres where education is given to lift the population out of poverty and to counter Islamic radicalism.