China is one of the safest places in the world, said Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi Wednesday morning at a press conference on the sidelines of the annual parliamentary session.

"If you don't believe it, you can ask your ambassador in China, or any ambassadors from western countries. Do they feel safer in China or elsewhere?" Yang said when answering a question raised by a British journalist.

The question came following reports about a foiled attack on a passenger plane of the China Southern Airlines on March 7.

Some passengers were caught carrying "suspicious liquid" on board the CZ6901flight, destined to Beijing from Urumqi, capital of the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

The suspects were controlled by air police and the plane landed at an airport in Lanzhou, capital of Gansu Province. The flight arrived in Beijing with all the passengers and crew members safe and sound the next morning.

Yang told reporters that investigation into the aborted attack is underway and he reassured that China is safe, and people who want to watch the Olympic Games in Beijing should be carefree.

More and more tourists are coming to China every year, and it is reportedly not easy to reserve a hotel room in Beijing during the coming Olympic Games, though they will be more expensive during the Games, Yang said.

"So I think people believe Beijing is a safe place," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency March 12, 2008)