China showed serious concern and displeasure over a US congressional hearing on Taiwan Relations Act and lodged serious representation with the US side, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan told a regular news briefing in Beijing Thursday.

Kong made the remarks in response to a report that the House of Representative Committee on International Relations of the United States held a hearing on Taiwan Relations Act on April 21.

US officials with state and defense departments were quoted as saying that the United States would continue to sell defensive weapons to Taiwan in accordance with the Act. If the Chinese mainland used force against Taiwan, the United States would inevitably get involved.

"China has been firmly opposed to the enactment of the so-called Taiwan Relations Act from the very beginning and US arms sales to Taiwan based on such act," Kong said.

Taiwan is part of China and no one can impede the process of the realization of China's reunification, he said.

US leaders have time and again reiterated the adherence to one-China policy, observation of the three Sino-US joint communiqués and opposition to "Taiwan independence", Kong said.

"We expect the United States to honor words with deeds, stop selling advanced weapons to Taiwan and interfering in China's internal affairs, and send no wrong signal to 'Taiwan independence' forces so as to maintain the peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits and the common interests of China and the United States with concrete actions," the spokesman said.

Kong also revealed that China decided to offer assistance to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) during DPRK leader Kim Jong-il's visit to China.

Kong said China has repeated several times that DPRK people are facing difficulties while making great achievements in domestic construction. China has decided to offer assistance to the DPRK with a view to strengthening the traditional friendship between the two peoples.

The amount of the assistance is limited and the two countries are still discussing the details, Kong stressed.

Kim Jong-il, general-secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK, visited China from April 19 to 21, at the invitation of Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Meanwhile, Kong said that China and the DPRK will continue pushing forward the process of the six-party talks.

Kong said during Kim's unofficial visit, China and the DPRK had in-depth discussion in this respect, and both sides agreed to continue the talks.

The DPRK will stick to peaceful solution to the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula through dialogue, and to the general goal of being nuclear weapon free, Kong said.

The current work of the six-party talks is to establish a working group, Kong said. With all parties' efforts, some consensus has been reached despite disparities.

China expects that the meeting of the working group begins soon so as to prepare for the next round of the six-party talks, he said.

Kong also confirmed that Kim Jong-il had left Beijing on April 21 after his visit to China.

When commenting on a report yesterday that 84 non-party congressmen visited Yasukuni Shrine, Kong said China's stance on the visit of Yasukuni Shrine by Japanese officials is clear and consistent.

"The Japanese government needs to have a correct position and face history squarely as it faces the future," Kong said. "It would be good for the healthy and stable development of relations between Japan and China and other countries in Asia."

Moreover, a correct attitude towards history would help Japan win trust from its Asian neighbors and the international community as well and conform with its own interests, Kong said.

A Japanese court ruled on April 7 that Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi violated the constitution by visiting a shrine honoring top class war criminals, reports said. But Koizumi vowed to keep visiting the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo.

Also at yesterday's briefing, Kong kindly suggested media in some developed countries let the voice of the leaders of their own countries and other countries be equally heard.

In response to a question that some parts of US Vice President Dick Cheney's speech delivered on April 15 at Fudan University in Shanghai were left out by Chinese media, Kong said China's television station had broadcast live Cheney's entire speech as part of his visit to China.

As for the report on the speech, Kong said it was up to the Chinese media to decide how to write their stories.

Kong recalled Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's speech at Harvard University of the United States last year, saying that Wen's speech covered not only cultural differences between China and the United States, but also the cooperation between the two countries as well as disputes of the two sides on some key issues and China's opinions on how to reduce the effect of disputes to China-US relations.

"But to my disappointment, there was few news reporting by major US media on the speech," Kong said, adding that US media's report on Wen's speech was far less than Chinese media's report on Cheney's speech.

Kong went on saying that some media of the developed countries cared too much to let the whole world hear their leaders' voice, but paid less attention to what other countries said to them.

"I am afraid this attitude might need to be adjusted a little bit so as to enable all people to have dialogue on a more equal footing," he said.

(Sources including Xinhua News Agency and China Daily, April 23, 2004)