British foreign secretary reiterates respect for China's territorial integrity

British Foreign Secretary William Hague on Monday reiterated his country's respect for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, reaffirming that London recognizes Tibet as part of China. In a telephone conversation with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Hague stressed that Britain does not support Tibet's independence. Britain, he said, has fully realized the sensitivity of Tibet-related issues and is willing to handle them properly on the basis of respecting China's concerns. Britain welcomes a strong, prosperous and successful China, and hopes to see Beijing play a more important role in international affairs, he added. Britain attaches great importance to its relationship with China and hopes to further increase exchanges with China in various fields, Hague said. For his part, Wang said Beijing appreciates Britain's high attention to its ties with China and thinks positively of Britain's reaffirmation that it recognizes Tibet as part of China and does not support Tibet's independence. Respecting and taking care of each other's major concerns are the precondition for maintaining political mutual trust and developing bilateral ties, Wang said. Noting that China and Britain have extensive common interests and their relationship enjoys a broad space of development, Wang urged Britain to help accumulate positive energy for the development of bilateral relations with concrete actions. The two sides, he said, should work together to guarantee a healthy and steady development of their relations. During their phone talks, the two also exchanged views on other issues of common concern, including bilateral exchanges on various levels.