China will make institutional arrangements to turn the country into a "fair playing ground" for foreign investors and grant foreign enterprises "national treatment," said Premier Wen Jiabao on Sunday.

He made this remarks at a press conference in response to a question on Chinese investment environment after Google's claim to pull out from the Chinese market and the arrest of Rio Tinto's four employees on charges of stealing state secrets.

Wen said that China welcomed foreign investors to do their business in line with the Chinese laws. He also encouraged them to bring more research and development centers into the country so as to improve the efficiency in the use of foreign capitals.

He said that China would stick to the policies of opening up and economic reform.

"Speaking of shortcomings in our work, my contacts with foreign investors are not close enough," said Wen.

He pledged to create more opportunities to exchange ideas with foreign investors in the remaining three years of his tenure.

(Xinhua News Agency March 14, 2010)