Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan says at a regular press conference Tuesday that Singapore's deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's visit to Taiwan has infringed China's core interest and undermined the political basis of Sino-Singapore relations.

 

Kong Quan says Lee's defense of his visit is contradictory as he said his visit was private at first, but then he said the visit was to maintain Singapore's interest.

 

He says Lee Hsien Loong's visit indicates a kind of support for Taiwan's separatists and not conducive to regional peace and stability, let alone to protect Singapore's interest shouldn't be based on sacrifice of China's interest and Sovereignty.

 

Kong Quan says China hopes Singapore realizes the severity of the matter and take practical measures to win China's trust.

 

He says Singapore should take responsibility for the current difficulties in bilateral relations.

 

Lee, the son of Singapore's founding father Lee Kwan Yew, said in a written response to the media last Friday that he had declined China's request not to go, as it would have undermined the city state's independence.

 

He will succeed Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong next month.

 

Meanwhile Shanghai has refused to let Singapore's Carnival be held in Pudong area and Chinese officials cancelled their training trip to Singapore.

 

Local newspaper reports that Singapore's carnival organizers intended to come to Pudong area in Shanghai to host the event, but encountered refusal from Shanghai.

 

Meanwhile, after governor of People's Bank of China Zhou Xiaochuan cancelled his visit to Singapore, 126 Chinese officials and mayors also cancelled their training plan in Singapore scheduled from July 26.

 

(CRI.com July 21, 2004)