China Thursday expressed dissatisfaction over groundless remarks by Italian
Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who said in a recent campaign rally that China
"boiled babies for fertilizer in Mao's (Zedong) era."
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
applauds during an European People Party (EPP) meeting in Rome March 30,
2006. [Reuters] |
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang asked the Italian leader, who is running
in an April 9-10 election, to pay attention to his words and actions during a
regular news conference in Beijing.
Italian opposition politicians accused Berlusconi of damaging the country's
international standing, saying Berlusconi's comments proved he was unsuitable to
represent Italy at the highest levels.
"This sort of thing does terrible damage. It displays an absolute lack of
care and an incomprehensible inability to understand the way the world is
today," said opposition leader Romano Prod, who is widely expected to win the
April election.
"This policy of carelessness only damages Italy."
But Berlusconi refused to apologize or retract his statement, although on
Wednesday he told reporters he had used "debatable irony" when referring to the
babies.
During his five years in power, Berlusconi has regularly sparked diplomatic
storms with other allies because of his highly unconventional style.
Sovereignty on Diaoyu Islands reiterated
The Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea have been Chinese territory since
ancient times based on "indisputable legal basis," the Foreign Ministry
reiterated yesterday.
"This is China's solemn position," spokesman Qin Gang
said.