It's right for Lithuania to correct wrongdoing

A Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Wednesday it is important for Lithuania to correct its wrongdoings after the Baltic nation's President Gitanas Nauseda said that the country's decision to allow Taipei to open a representative office using the name of Taiwan was a mistake.

"Recognizing the mistake is a right step," ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters at a regular news briefing in Beijing. "It is more important to take actions to redress the erroneous acts of creating the false impression of 'one China, one Taiwan' and come back onto the track of upholding the one-China principle," he said.

Noting that the ins and outs of the difficult China-Lithuania relations are very clear, Wang said that looking for excuses for one's mistake won't help solve the problems or improve bilateral ties.

"We also warn the Taiwan authorities that attempting to seek 'Taiwan independence' is doomed to fail," he said.

In November, the Lithuanian government allowed the Taiwan authorities to set up the "Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania" in disregard of China's solemn representations. In response, China downgraded the two countries' diplomatic relations to the charge d'affaires level.

Also on Wednesday, Wang confirmed the appointment of Zhang Ming, China's ambassador to the European Union, as the new secretary-general of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Zhang began his three-year term on Saturday.

"I'm sure he will push for new progress of the SCO just like his predecessors," Wang said, describing him as a veteran diplomat with rich experience in multilateral diplomacy.

Wang said that as the host country of the SCO Secretariat, China will continue to support the work of the Secretariat and the secretary-general and jointly uphold the Shanghai spirit with other parties.

The appointment makes Zhang the first Chinese head of the SCO since veteran diplomat Zhang Deguang, the first secretary-general of the organization, left office in 2006.