BEIJING, Dec. 1 (Xinhuanet) -- China opposes any foreign intervention in Hong Kong affairs, which are China's internal affairs, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said here on Thursday.

　　"The Hong Kong affairs are China's domestic affairs, and the Chinese side opposes any fo reign intervention," spokesman Qin Gang said when asked to comment on the meeting between US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Martin Lee, a lawmaker from Hong Kong's Legislative Council.

　　Rice and Lee met on Tuesday in Washington. A US State Department spokesman said after the meeting that the United States supports Hong Kong's democracy and universal suffrage.

　　Qin said China has always attached great importance to and actively supported the progressive development of Hong Kong's political system based on the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Basic Law and the real situation in Hong Kong.

　　The spokesman expressed the belief that as long as all Hong Kong people can take Hong Kong's long-term stability and prosperity into consideration and adopt a rational attitude to seek consensus, Hong Kong's political system would develop in a steady, sound and orderly way, and favorable conditions would be created for finally achieving the goal outlined in the HKSAR Basic Law -- the general election of the HKSAR Chief Executive and all members of the HKSAR Legislative Council.

　　Annan's China visit

　　At the invitation of the Chinese government, Annan will pay an official visit to China from Dec. 4 to 7. When asked about the detailed schedule of his China trip, Qin told a regular press conference that President Hu Jintao, Vice Premier Hui Liangyu and State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan will meet with Annan, and Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo will confer with him during his stay in Beijing.

　　"The two sides will have an exchange of ideas on international and regional issues of mutual concern and the cooperation between China and the U.N.," said Qin Gang.

　　During his visit to China, Annan will also meet and converse with students from elite Beijing University, and have an interview with Chinese media, the spokesman said.

　　Cross-border river pollution

　　China has decided to provide Russia with testing instruments and activated carbon to deal with the chemical pollution slick in Songhua River which is moving towards the Russian border.

　　To help Russia's far eastern area deal with the impact brought by the pollution, China informed Russia on Tuesday that it will send water quality testing equipments and activated carbon filters to Russia's border city of Khabarovsk, said Qin.

　　"The materials are now being transported to Russia's far east region," Qin said.

　　The water pollution on Songhua River was caused by an explosion at a petrochemical plant on November 13 in northeastern China's Jilin Province. It released poisonous substances benzene and nitrobenzene into the Songhua River, resulting in the 80-kilometer-long pollution slick.

　　Officials in Khabarovsk expressed thanks for China's timely assistance, saying the help demonstrates the efficiency of the Chinese government and the Chinese people's friendship, said Qin.

　　The move also shows China matches its actions with words and China is sincere and determined to help Russia, said Qin.

　　Qin stressed China will continue to enhance cooperation and communication with Russia and try best to eliminate the impact of the pollution as much as possible.

　　Co-op with UN human rights mechanism

　　China values the exchanges and cooperation with the relevant UN human rights mechanism, Qin told the press conference.

　　Special rapporteur on torture of the UN Human Rights Commission Manfred Novak's current China visit indicates China's sincerity to make exchanges and cooperation with the relevant UN human rights mechanism in a spirit of mutual respect and equality, said Qin.

　　At the invitation of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Novak paid the visit to China from Nov. 21 to Dec. 2. Besides Beijing, he has visited Lhasa, capital city of Tibet Autonomous Region and Urumqi, capital city of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

　　During his stay in China, Novak has met and held talks with officials of China's ministries of Foreign Affairs, Justice and Public Security, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and local officials of Lhasa and Urumqi, acquainting himself with China's practice to reduce and eliminate torture.

　　Novak also visited some houses of detention in the three cities and talked with some personnel, lawyers and scholars from universities, academic institutions and other non-governmental organizations, Qin said.

　　The rapporteur on torture is a special procedure under the UN Commission on Human Rights, and China believes that Novak's visit to China will be conducive to further increasing mutual understanding, Qin noted.

　　Six-party talks

　　China adopts an open attitude toward any proposals conducive to promoting the six-party talks process and to finding a peaceful solution to the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, said Qin.

　　Qin said that the Republic of Korea (ROK) has offered some suggestions concerning the form and site of the six-party talks.

　　It is in the interest of all concerned parties to achieve the goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to safeguard the peninsula's peace and stability through dialogue and peaceful negotiations, Qin said, adding that China wants to keep in close touch with other parties concerned and hear their opinions, so as to push forward the six-party talks process. Enditem