China urges Australia to "stop making irresponsible remarks" on Rio Tinto trial

BEIJING, March 30 (Xinhua) -- China Tuesday urged Australia to "stop making irresponsible remarks" on the Rio Tinto trial.

"We express serious concerns about some comments made by the Australian side on the Rio Tinto case," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said at a regular news briefing.

"The Rio Tinto case is an individual criminal case and China's relevant judiciary department has given its verdict after the first instance trial," said Qin.

"The Australian side should respect the verdict and stop making irresponsible remarks," he said.

Four defendants in the Rio Tinto case, including Australian national Stern Hu, got jail terms from seven to 14 years for bribery and stealing commercial secrets.

The verdict was handed down Monday afternoon by the Shanghai No.1 Intermediate People's Court.

Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith reportedly said on Monday that China had missed an opportunity to clarify its laws regarding commercial secrets.