Chinese Premier Li Keqiang urged Malaysia not to give up on its search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

Li's statement comes after Malaysia declared the disappearance of MH370 an accident. All 239 passengers and crew on board are presumed dead.

Li had expressed deep sympathy for the families on board the ill-fated plane.  Out of the 227 passengers on board, 154 were Chinese nationals.  

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"It is a hard time for the families of everyone on board (the plane) and all of us as well," Li said.

The Chinese Premier spoke in a joint press conference with visiting French Prime Minister Manuel Valls. Four French nationals also lost their lives in the flight.

Malaysia's move to declare the flight's disappearance was designed so families can proceed with the compensation claim. But some Chinese families of passengers onboard MH370 have reacted angrily, as Malaysia declared there were no survivors.

Some of the passengers' relatives gathered around the Malaysian Embassy in Beijing to protest the announcement.

"Malaysia has made this announcement without any evidence," said Jiang Hui, whose mother was on board the flight. "It is cold, cruel, irresponsible and illegal. It takes away our only pillar of support."

Malaysia's Civil Aviation Department Director General Azharuddin Abdul Rahman appealed for calm. Although 13 countries have lost their loved ones to the plane tragedy, it is important for the families to take considerable effort to "resume normal lives" as much as possible, Azharuddin added.

Despite Malaysia's announcement Thursday, Li said, China will continue on its efforts to find the missing plane in coordination with Australia. Four ships are currently continuing the search.

The flight bound for Beijing disappeared on March 8, 2014, shortly after it took off from Kuala Lumpur. Neither the wreckage of the aircraft nor the bodies of those on board have yet been found.

TagsMalaysia, mh370, missing plane, Search and recovery, Li Keqiang, Malaysia Airlines