China reiterates its principled stance on Venezuela issue

BEIJING - China on Friday reiterated its principled stance on Venezuela issue and called for efforts to promote peaceful resolution of the issue.

"China opposes external forces interfering in Venezuela's internal affairs and military intervention in the country," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang told a routine press conference.

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Thursday failed to adopt a US-drafted resolution on Venezuela. China and some other countries vetoed the resolution.

"It is regrettable the relevant draft resolution runs in serious inconsistency with China's principle and stance on the issue," Lu said. "We had no choice but to veto it," he added.

When asked to make comments, Lu said that China supported the Venezuelan government's efforts in safeguarding the country's sovereignty, independence and stability, and held that the Venezuelan affairs should be decided by the Venezuelan people.

China called on relevant parties in Venezuela to seek a political settlement via dialogue and consultation within the constitutional and legal framework, he added.

The principle of China in addressing Venezuela issue at the UNSC is that China is committed to safeguarding the principles of the UN Charter and basic norms governing international relations, and promoting peaceful settlement of the issue, Lu said.

Maintaining Venezuela's peace and stability conforms with the fundamental interests of the country and its people, as well as the common interests of all parties, the spokesperson said.

"We hope that the international community can do more to improve Venezuela's stability, economic development and people's welfare, and provide constructive assistance to the country on the premise of respecting its sovereignty, in an effort to facilitate the smooth settlement of relevant issues as soon as possible."

"Any UNSC action taken on the Venezuela issue should comply with the above-mentioned principles," he added.