China to weigh evidence before blaming N.Korea for warship sinking

China currently has no "first-hand information" to blame the maritime incident on the North and will draw its own conclusion after carefully studying all information provided by the parties involved, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Qin Gang, said at a press briefing on Thursday.

The announcement comes shortly after a spokesman for the U.S. Department of State pledged support for South Korea and expressed hope that "China and Russia will do the same."

"China and Russia clearly have to play a significant role in that response that sends a very clear and compelling message to North Korea," Philip Crowley, the state department's assistant secretary, said.

President Dmitry Medvedev ordered on Wednesday to send a group of Russian experts to South Korea to examine the results of a probe into the sinking of a South Korean warship, Kazinform cites RIA Novosti. See www.en.rian.ru for full version.