China opposes any foreign intervention in Hong Kong affairs, which are China's internal affairs, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Thursday.

"The Hong Kong affairs are China's domestic affairs, and the Chinese side opposes any foreign 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.

Source: Xinhua