China and Britain

China and Britain held their first upgraded strategic dialogue in Beijing on March 16 during British Foreign Secretary David Miliband's visit to China.

Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo and Miliband co-chaired the dialogue, which had previously been held at the vice foreign ministerial level.

Dai said he hoped the two countries could make use of this mechanism to discuss "strategic issues in bilateral and international relations."

During a separate meeting, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao told Miliband that China highly values its relationship with Britain. China welcomes investors from Britain and is willing to offer favorable conditions for them, he said.

China and Britain should work more closely together on the green economy, environmental protection and climate change, while jointly opposing trade protectionism, Wen added.

China and U.S.

China has urged the United States to cease interfering in other countries' sovereign affairs by issuing regular reports on human rights records, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang.

"China is willing to have dialogues and exchanges with all other countries on human rights on the basis of equality and mutual respect to promote understanding and reduce disputes," Qin said in a March 12 statement. "However, it firmly opposes any country interfering in its internal affairs in the name of human rights."

The day before, the U.S. State Department released its 2009 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. As in previous years, this year's report condemned human rights conditions in China.

The Chinese Government attaches great importance to safeguarding human rights, Qin said, adding that China's Constitution and laws also respect and preserve human rights.