China tells U.N. rights chief to respect its sovereignty after Xinjiang comments

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Foreign Ministry urged U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet to respect the country's sovereignty after she urged it to allow monitors into the restive far western region of Xinjiang and expressed concern about the situation there.

Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang made the comments at a daily news briefing in Beijing.

Last month, a United Nations rights panel said it had received credible reports that up to one million ethnic Uighurs may be held in extra-legal detention in Xinjiang, and called for them to be freed.

(Reporting by Michael Martina; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)