BEIJING, March 6 (News Agencies) - China said Tuesday an internal inquiry had firmly rejected U.S. allegations that Chinese companies helped Iraq upgrade its air defenses.
Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan said a "thorough investigation" by relevant government departments had shown the U.S. allegations to be false.
"The result is that Chinese enterprises and companies have not assisted Iraq in building fiber optic network cable used in defense," Tang told his annual press conference.
Following U.S. pressure, China said last week it would investigate U.S. claims Chinese technicians were helping Iraq build a fiber optic network that would increase Iraqi ability to target U.S. and British fighter planes.
Tang insisted China was serious about carrying out United Nations resolutions imposed against Iraq following its 1990 invasion of Kuwait, which would make the fiber optic work illegal.
"The government has very clear-cut provisions ... which prohibit any company or individual from engaging in any activity, economic activity or trading activities which go against the U.N. Security Council resolutions on Iraq.
"All these enterprises and individuals in China must strictly abide by these resolutions. And so this time these provisions have been once again reaffirmed to corporations nationwide," he said.
Tang reiterated China's claims the United States has ulterior motives for making the allegations.
"By spreading such information, probably what has been attempted is to divert the attention of the international community away from the unilateral bombing of Iraq by the U.S. and Britain in circumvention of the United Nations," Tang said.
U.S. officials said last week that February's bombing of Iraqi air defense targets had been carried out on a Friday, the Muslim holy day, specifically to avoid endangering Chinese technicians.
U.S. officials said the reports of Chinese technicians working in Iraq had been culled from media accounts, industry intelligence and other information.
China had immediately denied the U.S. charges, but later agreed to conduct an investigation.
Sanctions were first imposed on Iraq to oblige it to pull its troops out of Kuwait but were later adapted in a bid to force it to eliminate its pursuit of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.
The United States has so far refrained from accusing China of violating the U.N. sanctions regime, but President George W. Bush has described the reports as "troubling."
