China backs Libya rebels

BEIJING—China urged a “stable transition of power” in Libya and said it was in contact with the rebel National Transitional Council, in the clearest sign yet that Beijing has effectively shifted recognition to rebel forces poised to defeat Moammar Gadhafi.

China “respects the choice of the Libyan people and hopes for a stable transition of power,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement issued on the ministry’s website on Wednesday.

“We have always attached significance to the important role of the National Transitional Council in solving Libya’s problems, and maintain contact with it,” Ma said, referring to the main Libyan rebel group fighting Gadhafi’s shrinking forces in the capital Tripoli.

“We hope that the future new government will adopt effective measures, draw together the forces of different factions, and restore social order as quickly as possible,” Ma said, referring to Libya.

Beijing has yet to formally recognize the rebel forces as Libya’s new leaders. But Ma’s comments and recent remarks from other officials indicated Beijing has decisively abandoned Gadhafi and turned to the rebels likely to take full control of Tripoli soon.

“We hope to play an active role in rebuilding Libya in the future, together with the international community,” the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, Shen Danyang, told a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday.

China is the world’s second-biggest oil consumer, and last year obtained 3 percent of its imported crude from Libya.

China did not use its UN Security Council veto power in March to block a resolution that authorized the Nato bombing campaign against Gadhafi’s forces, but it then condemned the strikes and urged compromise between his government and rebels. Reuters