China welcomed the European Union foreign ministers'...

China welcomed the European Union foreign ministers' decision not to co-sponsor a planned US resolution criticising China's human rights record during the UN Commission on Human Rights. "China has entered a new phase in the comprehensive construction of a well-off, lawful society," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao. "China's human rights conditions have never been better." Zhu said capital punishment would not be abolished, but that China has very strict rules concerning its application.