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China opposes honorary Paris citizenship for Dalai Lama

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-05-07 20:50

BEIJING - China demanded Thursday that the city of Paris stop interfering in China's internal affairs.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu made the comment in response to a question on the city's decision to give honorary citizenship to the Dalai Lama next month.

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The Paris City Council approved a resolution last year to honor the Dalai Lama, which aroused indignation in China, Ma said.

"I want to reaffirm that Sino-French relations got back on track through the joint efforts of both countries," Ma said.

He said he hoped France would work with China to remove obstacles and promote ties that would develop in a sound and stable way.

Bilateral relations warmed after several high-ranking current and former French officials visited China, including former Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin, National Assembly Speaker Bernard Accoyer and former President Jacques Chirac.

Bilateral tensions thawed after the two foreign ministries jointly released a communique on April 1 stating that France fully recognized "the sensitivity of the Tibet issue" and that France would not support "Tibet independence" in any form.

On the same day, President Hu Jintao met with French President Nicolas Sarkozy on the sidelines of the G20 summit in London, signifying the restoration of bilateral ties soured by the French leader's meeting with the Dalai Lama.