The Chinese government was concerned for the safety of its citizens in Iraq as tension there was increasingly worsened, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said Tuesday at a regular ministry news conference in Beijing.
The Chinese government had adopted necessary measures like governments of other countries, she noted, adding that the Chinese embassy in Iraq had taken steps to cope with any emergency including briefing its citizens on the Iraqi security situation and other security warnings and offering them notices for attention.
If an emergency occurred, the Chinese embassy in Iraq and other embassies concerned would shoulder their steadfast responsibility to protect the safety of the Chinese citizens.
In view of the growing tension in Iraq, China attached the greatest attention to the safety of its personnel in Iraq and decided to reduce its non-essential embassy staff, Zhang said in Beijing Monday.
(Xinhua News Agency February 12, 2003)
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