BEIJING, June 12  -- China opposes big countries bullying smaller ones, but small countries should not deliberately be provocative, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Thursday.

Hua Chunying's comment came in response to a journalist's question about whether China should change its propaganda that portrays Vietnam as a small country that attacks China.

"I don't know about the background and the purpose of your question. I have never read about similar reports or comments," Hua said at a regular news briefing.

China has always advocated that countries, big or small, are equal and has adhered to the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence, Hua said.

China supports all countries to develop friendly and cooperative relations based on mutual respect, equality and non-interference in each other's domestic affairs, she said.

"We should respect and treat each other equally to develop mutually beneficial cooperation, which will be conducive to the parties involved as well as the region and world," the spokeswoman said.

China fought battles with Vietnam along the Sino-Vietnamese border in February 1979.