China on Tuesday encouraged Iran to abide by UN resolutions and
strengthen cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) to achieve early solution of its nuclear issue.
"China is working on IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei's
newly released report on the Iranian nuclear program, which is objective
and professional," Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Liu
Jianchao told a routine press conference yesterday.
"According to the report, some progress has been achieved by
Iran and the IAEA. However, Iran has not abided by the demands of
the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and
suspended its uranium enrichment activities," Liu said.
"We hope Iran will effectively abide by the UN Security Council
resolutions and strengthen cooperation with the IAEA, and try to
resolve pending issues," Liu said.
"We also hope that the other parties concerned will continue
diplomatic efforts to revive negotiations at an early date," Liu
said.
ElBaradei released a report last week saying that Iran had made
progress in revealing the extent of its nuclear program while
refusing to halt enrichment activities.
The United States and some other Western countries have been
alleging that Iran may try to develop nuclear weapons under the
cover of a civilian program. Tehran insists its nuclear program is
for peaceful purposes only.
Responding to a question concerning recent US criticism of China
over Iran, Liu called the accusations "groundless," "not in line
with the facts" and "harmful."
China always advocates firmly maintaining the international
non-proliferation system and works to solve the Iranian nuclear
issue through diplomatic negotiations.
China has joined the Security Council consultations with an
active and responsible attitude, the spokesman said.
"We believe China and the US have a common interest over this
issue, that is, to safeguard the international nuclear
non-proliferation regime," Liu said.
China and the US should work more constructively on this issue,
Liu said.
Advance troop of engineering unit to head for Darfur
The advance troop of a 315-men engineering unit is scheduled to
head for Sudan's Darfur on Friday to attend the hybrid peacekeeping
troops of the Unites Nations and the African Union, said Liu.
The advance troop will leave Zhengzhou, capital of central
China's Henan Province, Liu said.
The UN-AU peacekeeping mission in Darfur is of large scale, and
the situation in the region is complicated, which might cause some
difficulties in the deployment, said Liu, calling for more patience
from the international society.
"China supports the UN, AU and the Sudanese government make
continued efforts to solve the problem via dialogue and
consultation, "said Liu, adding that China opposed to politicalize
relevant technical issues.
China has been committed to sending a 315-men multi-functional
engineering unit to Darfur, which would be the first batch of UN-AU
peacekeepers in place in Darfur, according to China's Special
Representative on African Affairs Liu Guijin.
China congratulates ASEAN on signing of
Charter
China on Tuesday congratulated the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN) on the signing of the ASEAN Charter at a
regional summit in Singapore.
"The signing of the ASEAN Charter is a landmark during the 40
years since ASEAN was established and a key result of ASEAN
community building," said Liu.
"We believe that under the Charter, ASEAN will continuously
advance its integration through building an ASEAN community, to
further peace, progress and prosperity in the region and world,"
Liu said.
Leaders of the 10 members of ASEAN gathered in Singapore on
Tuesday for the grouping's 13th summit, where they signed the
Charter, which will transform ASEAN into a more effective,
rules-based and rules-bound organization.
Citing ASEAN integration as a "strategic concept" aimed at
long-term growth, Liu said that China supports the ASEAN
integration process and would like to provide assistance.
ASEAN includes Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.
The organization has a total population of about 500 million, a
total area of 4.5 million square km, and a combined gross domestic
product of almost 700 billion U.S. dollars.
Portuguese PM, EC President to attend China-EU summit
Liu announced that Prime Minister Jose Socrates of Portugal,
which currently holds EU's rotating presidency, and European
Commission (EC) President Jose Manuel Durao Barroso will attend the
10th China-EU Leaders' Meeting in Beijing on Nov. 28.
They will come at the invitation of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.
China urges Germany to mend bilateral ties as soon as
possible
China urged Germany to take effective measures to mend
Sino-German ties which it says have been undermined by Chancellor
Angela Merkel's meeting with Dalai Lama.
"The German leader's meeting with Dalai Lama has severely
impaired Sino-German ties and damaged the common interests of both
countries," Liu said.
"China attached great importance to the relations with Germany
and we feel sorry for the damage of bilateral ties," Liu said.
He urged the German side to take effective actions as soon as
possible to erase the shadow that had been cast on the ties.
China is confident about the prospects for Sino-German ties,
said the spokesman. China values the position Germany holds in the
European Union, and the role it plays in the European Union on
promoting China-EU relations, he said.
"As a country that holds such a vital position and plays such a
key role, Germany, in dealing with Sino-German ties, should not
only take the common interests of both countries into
consideration, but also think over the overall ties between China
and EU," Liu said.
(Xinhua News Agency November 21, 2007)
