On the afternoon of November 1, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Liu Jianchao held a regular press conference and answered questions related to the Six-Party Talks, the Myanmar issue and the Iranian nuclear issue.

Liu: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. First of all, I will start with an announcement.

At the invitation of Premier Wen Jiabao, Janez Janša, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia will pay an official visit to China from November 8 to 11.

Now the floor is open.

Q: The pope in Vatican will meet privately with Dalai in December. Do you have any comment?

A: We hope that the Vatican should refrain from doing things that will hurt the feeling of the Chinese people, and display sincerity to improve relations with China by taking real actions.

Q: China has voiced its position explicitly on the Dalai issue on many occasions. But leaders of some countries insisted on meeting with Dalai. What's the reason in your view? How has it undermined their respective relations with China? Have China adopted any countermeasures?

A: On your first question, we also find their actions confusing. The reasons that some countries and people are so interested in Dalai, a political exile attempting to split the motherland are confined to two: one, they are mislead by Dalai's lies, two, they have some plans on China. Maybe they wish to change something by interfering in China's domestic affairs through supporting Dalai. However, they can change nothing. Neither can they change the firm resolve of the Chinese people to safeguard sovereignty and territorial integrity, nor our resolve to build a Tibet of development and prosperity. We hope relevant parties do not indulge in their wishful calculations.

As to the damage caused by the meeting between leaders of these countries and Dalai, I think that the move of relevant countries has already undermined bilateral relations and cooperation. From the long-term perspective, both the images of relevant countries in the heart of the Chinese people and their credibility in honoring basic norms governing international relations have been impaired. We hope that relevant countries treat it seriously, stop interfering in the domestic affairs of China and safeguard bilateral relations by taking concrete actions.

Q: Mr. Gambari, the Special Advisor of the UN Secretary-General on the issue of Myanmar, will visit Myanmar again on Saturday. Will China exert more pressure on Myanmar to improve the current situation?

A: I don't think that the Chinese government should exert more pressure on Myanmar. China doesn't interfere in the domestic affairs of other countries. China maintains normal communications with Myanmar. We hope that parties involved in Myanmar exercise restraints, settle the issue through dialogue and consultation, so as to realize national reconciliation and enable Myanmar to move on towards stability, democracy and development.

Mr. Gambari, the Special Advisor of the UN Secretary-General, will visit Myanmar again on November 3. China supports his mediation efforts and hopes his visit can yield positive results.

Q: The U.S. Secretary of Defense Gates will visit China this month. Whom will he meet with during his stay in China? What will be discussed? Secondly, please brief us on the visit by Hill, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State to China and the latest progress of the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula.

A: As for your first question, at the invitation of Chinese Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, State Councilor and Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates will visit China from November 4 to 6. China's state and military leaders will meet and exchange views with Gates on international and regional security situation, China-US military and bilateral relations and other major issues of common interest. We believe that this visit will help strengthen mutual understanding and trust between the two militaries and promote healthy and stable development of bilateral military relations.

You also asked about the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula, I'd like to brief you on the latest progress of the Six-Party Talks. US Assistance Secretary of State Hill and DPRK Foreign Minister Kim Kye Kwan are both in Beijing these days. Yesterday, Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei met with them respectively and exchanged views with them on the next phase of the Six-Party Talks. My knowledge is, the DPRK and the US also held meeting in Beijing. In addition, as agreed by all parties, today the US expert team will leave for the DPRK to work on the disablement of the nuclear facilities. We expect that the Joint Document reached by relevant parties on October 3 be implemented in a comprehensive and balanced way.

The working group on economic and energy cooperation is having the 3rd meeting in the ROK. Participants focused their discussion on the follow-up assistance to the DPRK. During this meeting, broad consensus has been reached and positive progress has been made. Chen Naiqing, Chinese Ambassador in charge of the Korean Peninsular Issue, heading the Chinese delegation composed of officials from the Ministry of the Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce, attended the meeting. We hope all parties concerned could deliver their respective commitment in real earnest and implement the second-phase action in a comprehensive and balanced way.

Q: Five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany will meet in London tomorrow to discuss the Iranian nuclear issue, including further sanctions against Iran. Who will attend the meeting from the Chinese side? How does China assess tougher sanctions against Iran at this moment?

A: I believe you are fully aware of China's position on the Iranian nuclear issue. We have always been upholding the current international non-proliferation regime and standing for resolving the Iranian nuclear issue peacefully through diplomatic negotiation.

As I know, political Director-Generals from the foreign ministries of the six countries on Iranian nuclear issue will meet in London tomorrow. Zhang Yan, Director-General of the Department of Arms Control and Disarmament, will attend the meeting on behalf of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The Iranian nuclear issue is currently escalated and the situation becomes difficult. Under the current circumstances, all parties concerned should make efforts to resolve this issue through peaceful negotiation and dialogue. China supports Iran to further enhance cooperation with the IAEA and strengthen contacts and consultation with the EU so as to move on to settle the issue peacefully.

If there are no more questions, thank you for attendance!