China appeared to dismiss a letter sent by three U.S. newspapers urging the country to reconsider its expulsions of American journalists.

The country announced on March 18 that it will expel American journalists who work for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post from the country. China also demanded that the three publications, as well as Voice of America and Time magazine, hand over information about their operations to the Chinese government.

The NYT, WSJ and WaPo published an open letter telling China that the decision was “uniquely damaging and reckless” as the world battles the novel coronavirus. The letter asked China to reconsider its decision, according to Reuters.

“The Chinese people do not welcome reports that are not objective and not fair,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement responding to the letter, according to Reuters. “Faced with the escalating political suppression and discriminatory practices of the United States, do you expect China to be merely a ‘silent lamb?'”

China’s statement also added that the country is open to media who are “in accordance with laws and regulations.” It denounced “the arrogance and prejudice” that the letter allegedly showed, according to China.

The statement did not directly answer the American newspaper’s request to reconsider the move, Reuters reported. It did reiterate that China blames the expulsion on the U.S., who restricted the number of Chinese reporters working for specific state-run publications in American on March 3.

Before America took this step, China expelled three WSJ reporters after an opinion article was published about China. The article referred to the country as the “real sick man of Asia.” (RELATED: Chinese Official Blames US For Introducing Coronavirus To Wuhan, Says US ‘Owes Us An Explanation’)