BEIJING, Feb 6 (AP) -- Angered by the recent State Department report on human rights, China responded in kind today, reeling off a litany of ills that it says plague the United States.

The United States is troubled by "notorious racial discrimination, violence, terrorism, an AIDS outbreak, an increasing number of single parent families, homeless people, prejudice against women, abuse of children and other human rights woes," the state-run Xinhua News Agency said.

The lengthy article was the most vehement response yet to last week's U.S. report, which condemned Beijing's repression of public dissent. The exchange of barbs has become an annual ritual that continues despite a recent improvement in Sino-U.S. ties.

The United States "is not a government of the world, nor does it have the status or right to spread irresponsible comments and accusations against others," Xinhua quoted Liu Wengzong, a professor at Beijing's Foreign Affairs Institute of China, as saying.

"The U.S. side simply is not qualified to comment on human rights protection," Dong Yunhu, a professor at the Communist Party's Central Party School, was quoted as saying.

The Xinhua article, which reflected the opinions of the Chinese leadership, said China's rapid economic growth has been accompanied by progress in improving human rights, developing its legal system, and "building democracy."

The scholars cited by Xinhua defended the 18-year sentence given to an ethnic Tibetan visiting scholar, Ngawang Choephel, who was detained in Tibet last year and convicted of espionage.

Ngawang Choephel was one of several people who have been charged under a broad and ambiguous State Security Law that is increasingly used to silence dissent.

"Criminals like Ngawang Choephel, who endanger state security and engage in espionage, would be punished in accordance with the law in any country," said Tian Dan, a senior official of the China Society for the Study of Human Rights.

Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow and 10 other musicians sent a letter this week to Vice President Al Gore protesting Ngawang Choephel's sentence. Gore is scheduled to visit China next month, but the performers urged him not to go unless Ngawang Choephel is released.

Tian also refuted criticism of an 11-year jail sentence for former student pro-democracy leader Wang Dan, convicted in October of attempting to subvert the government.

U.S. officials have indicated that they will continue to push for improved treatment of Chinese dissidents, most of whom are in labor camps or exile, despite China's rejection of such pressure as interference in its internal affairs.