China is "strongly dissatisfied" with Japan for allowing former Taiwan leader Lee Teng-hui to enter the country, and the Foreign Ministry has lodged strong protest to the Japanese government over the issue, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao in Beijing on Monday.

The Japanese government allowed Lee to enter the country despite China's repeated firm protests, Liu said. He called it a "wrong decision."

He said Lee is the chief representative of the radical force for Taiwan independence on Taiwan Island and is "an out-and-out troublemaker in the international arena."

Liu said that by allowing Lee to enter the country, the Japanese government is conniving with and supporting the Taiwan independence force. The move has sent a wrong signal and has severely disturbed the political foundation of China-Japan relations.

China has seriously requested Japan to consider overall China-Japan relations and take effective steps to "remove the bad influence of the issue," Liu said.

He said China will closely follow developments during Lee's visit, and reserves its right to react further.

(Xinhua News Agency December 28, 2004)