China has responded positively to the call of the Malaysian government for the international community to participate in the follow-up search for the missing MH370 flight and  to create an independent team that will thoroughly investigate the incident.

China's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang said China will continue to actively participate in the follow-up search operation and vowed to closely coordinate with Malaysian and Australian authorities in conducting a fair investigation.

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Qin's pronouncement came a few hours after the Malaysian government issued its latest statement on the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which was carrying 154 Chinese passengers from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

In a press release on Thursday, Malaysia Airlines said there has been no trace of the missing flight as of this time and added that the search operation in the Indian Ocean is moving to a new phase.

Malaysia's Foreign Ministry also said that there is still no trace of the missing plane. In a report on Thursday, Malaysia said air traffic controllers only realized that the Malaysian Airline plane was missing 17 minutes after it vanished from the radar.

Malaysian radar noticed that the plane was off at 1:21 am on 8 March but Vietnamese air traffic controllers only queried about it at 1:38 am, according to the report.

The release of the report came on the same day that airline officials have urged relatives of the passengers to go back home and wait for news on the missing plane.

"China will work with the Malaysian side to provide services to the passengers' relatives and ensure that their just and lawful interests are protected," Qin said.

The massive search operation has already lasted for more than 50 days but investigators still have not found evidences to bring them to the area where the plane could have possibly crashed.

There were various reports of debris and ping sounds believed to be from the plane's black box, but until now, the plane remains missing.

China has sent 18 naval ships, 13 planes, and has utilized 21 satellites to aid in the search operation. Qin said the scale of the operation is unprecedented in the country's history.

Tagsmh370, Malaysia Airlines, Malaysia