Palmer urged to eliminate negative influence of insulting Chinese

BEIJING - China urged Australian politician Clive Palmer to take further action to negate the influence of his remarks following an apology to the Chinese embassy in Canberra.

Palmer apologized for calling Chinese "bastards" and "mongrels" during a media interview. The Chinese Ambassador to Australia received Palmer's apology letter on Tuesday.

"The Chinese will listen to his words and watch his deeds," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in a press release on Wednesday.

"We hope Representative Palmer will continue to take concrete measures to eliminate the negative influence of his erroneous remarks."

After receiving Palmer's apology, Chinese Ambassador Ma Zhaoxu emphasized that remarks attacking or slandering China would not gain popular support and were doomed to fail.

Palmer's comments last week caused widespread condemnation from Australian politicians, business leaders and the general public, while sparking protests from the Chinese community in Australia.

The Chinese government has expressed its strong indignation and severe condemnation against Palmer's insults.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was quick to rebuke Palmer saying the comments were destructive and counter-productive.