National flags of China (R) and the United States. (Xinhua/Bao Dandan)

BEIJING, July 27  -- At 10 a.m. on Monday, as required by China, the U.S. Consulate General in Chengdu was closed. Relevant Chinese authorities then entered through the front entrance and took over the premises, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on its website.

On July 24, the ministry informed the U.S. Embassy in China of its decision to withdraw its consent for the operation of the consulate, a "legitimate and necessary response" to an earlier U.S. unilateral provocation of demanding that China close its Consulate General in Houston.

Spokesperson Wang Wenbin later on Monday dismissed media reports saying the U.S. closure of the consulate aimed to crack down on theft of commercial secrets, engagement in illegal activities and even espionage over a long period, and served to deter staff working at other Chinese consulates from similar activities, quoting interviews with high-ranking U.S. officials.

"The U.S. remarks are groundless accusations, and are purely slander and defamation," Wang told a daily press briefing when responding to a query about his comments on the relevant reports.

As the first consulate general set up by China after the establishment of diplomatic ties, China's Houston consulate has been committed to promoting mutual understanding among various communities and cooperation in various sectors between the two countries, which has won recognition from various communities in the south of the United States, Wang said.

Wang quoted local U.S. media saying that as China is the second-largest trading partner of the Houston region, the latter has benefited a lot from the consulate, which has served as a bridge linking the region to China in terms of tourism, trade and cultural exchanges.