Nobel chairman's demotion won't harm ties with country: China
China maintains that it is up to Norway to make a gesture to normalise ties
BEIJING (AFP) - The demotion of the Nobel Peace Prize committee s chairman will not thaw Sino-Norway ties, Beijing said Wednesday amid a diplomatic deep freeze imposed by China after a prominent dissident was given the 2010 award.
Tuesday s removal of Nobel committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland from his post atop the high-profile panel spurred speculation of a potential rapprochement between Oslo and Beijing after more than four years of frosty ties.
Jagland, who will remain a committee member, was at the helm of the organisation when it awarded the 2010 peace prize to jailed Chinese activist Liu Xiaobo, a move that enraged Beijing.
China later banned whole salmon imports from Norway, supposedly on safety grounds, and Norwegian citizens have been excluded from a 72-hour transit visa scheme.
Oslo s ambassador -- in post since 2007 -- has reportedly been unable to return home for fear that if he leaves, his successor will not be granted a visa.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that Beijing s position on the awarding of the prize and China-Norway relations is "subject to no change".
"Our position on developing ties with Norway is clear, which is also I believe very clear to the Norwegian side," she told reporters at a regular briefing, without elaborating.
Hua declined to say whether Jagland s departure had ever been a subject of discussion between Oslo and Beijing.
The Nobel committee is independent of the government, although its members are chosen by the Norwegian parliament.
Oslo s attempts to normalise political ties with the world s second largest economy have proved fruitless as, according to analysts, Beijing wants to set an example to deter other countries.
In September Norwegian media reported that in 2013 then-prime minister Jens Stoltenberg had considered -- but ultimately decided against -- secretly apologising to Beijing for Liu s Nobel award.
China maintains that it is up to Norway to make a gesture to normalise ties.
