China's deputy permanent representative to the UN Liu Zhenmin said that China is against a proposal that deviates from the principle of capacity to pay UN expenses and is ready to make an even greater contribution to the body on the basis of this principle.

Liu made the remarks on Monday when the Administrative and Budgetary Committee (the 5th Committee) of the 61st session of the UN General Assembly met to consider the assessment scale for the apportionment of UN expenses.

He said that the "capacity to pay" principle had been the cornerstone of the scale methodology since the inception of the UN.

It is a principle that reflects the general consensus of member states and has been reaffirmed by relevant General Assembly resolutions many times, he added.

"This principle therefore brooks no change or distortion. China is against any proposal that deviates from this principle, be it the concept of 'responsibility to pay' or the setting up of a minimum assessment rate for permanent members of the Security Council, as suggested by a certain state."

He said that China, as a member of the UN and a permanent member of the Security Council, fully understood its responsibility toward the organization and toward world peace and security.

The Chinese government stands ready to make an even greater contribution to the UN on the basis of the "capacity to pay" principle as its domestic economy continues to grow, he added.

In their statements, South Africa, on behalf of the Group of 77, China, Pakistan, India and Egypt, along with Finland, on behalf of the EU and several other countries, all supported this principle as the scale of assessment for the period 2007-2009.

Many developing countries also voiced their opposition to any proposals advocating a large-scale increase in their contributions.

(Xinhua News Agency October 11, 2006)