China neutral on Cyprus

China is giving no hints about whether it is responding for the call by Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos for France, China and Russia to get more heavily involved in the Cyprus problem as UN Security Council permanent members.

Asked about the stance of China on the Cyprus issue, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said his government “calls always for the full respect of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Cyprus and points out that the legitimate rights of both the Greek-Cypriots and the Turkish-Cypriots should be safeguarded.”

The spokesman said that his country was very concerned about the Cyprus issue and believes this should be solved in a just and reasonable manner, in line with the relevant UN resolutions.

“China supports the efforts of the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to accelerate a political settlement and underlines that any solution must take into consideration the benefits and concerns of both sides,” he concluded.