China's foreign ministry said on Wednesday that offices set up in the Netherlands were not police stations but rather centres to help Chinese citizens renew documents, a day after the Dutch government ordered their closure amidst a probe into their activities.
The Dutch government announced last week it would investigate whether the offices had been operating illegally on behalf of Beijing, following reports by RTL Nieuws and website "Follow The Money" that two such sites had carried out functions, including remotely renewing Chinese citizens drivers' licences without official diplomatic status.
