HONG KONG (AP) — China's top diplomat is accusing the U.S. and other unidentified Western nations of "fanning the flames" of street protests in Hong Kong targeting Beijing and the semi-autonomous region's administration.

State Councilor Yang Jiechi was quoted Friday in an interview with the official Xinhua News Agency as saying those governments were arranging meetings with protest leaders and encouraging them in actions that were undermining Hong Kong's "prosperity, stability and security."

Yang's remarks follow statements earlier this week by a former Hong Kong official that the U.S. and self-governing democratic Taiwan were behind the unrest sparked by Hong Kong now-suspended attempt to push through legislation that could send criminal suspects to China.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday described such claims "ludicrous on its face."