China "expressed regret" over the use of military force in Libya even as it decided last week not to block authorization of the strikes at the United Nations Security Council. China's rare acquiescence moved it further away from its longstanding foreign policy based on non-intervention.

"The Chinese side has always opposed the use of military force in international relations," a government statement said after military strikes against Libya. The attacks are part of a European-led effort to establish a no-fly zone over the country and shake support for Libyan strongman Col. Moammar Gadhafi.

Analysts said the government's decision Thursday not to veto a Security Council resolution to approve the use of force in Libya reflects changes in Beijing's diplomatic strategy as its global interests become more extensive and complex.

China has in the past abstained or voted in favor of sanctions or military force only in cases where countries violated international nonproliferation rules or invaded another country. Beijing abstained, for example, in the vote on Resolution 678 in November 1990 authorizing the use of force against Iraq for its occupation of Kuwait in the Gulf War.

But Chinese analysts said they couldn't recall a previous instance where China had allowed the Security Council to pass a resolution based on humanitarian concerns alone. In fact, China has used its veto power frequently to block or dilute Security Council measures targeting countries like Zimbabwe, Myanmar and Sudan for human rights violations.

China signaled that its approach in Libya's case might be different in February, when it voted in favor of a Security Council sanctions resolution on Libya.

But its willingness to allow a resolution on the use of force was unclear, with Chinese officials emphasizing publicly the need for a "peaceful solution" to the crisis that respected Libya's "sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Shi Yinhong, a scholar of international affairs at Renmin University in Beijing, said that the speed of recent events in Libya likely drove Beijing's acquiescence. As pro-Gadhafi forces secured a string of victories against rebels over the last week, China faced increasing pressure from other Security Council members not to block the resolution, diminishing its ability to bargain and forcing it to make a decision quickly.

Mr. Shi said China's role in last week's vote was part of an emerging pattern at the U.N. of succumbing to demands by other member states. "At first China is extremely reluctant" about a proposed measure, "then they have some consultations with...other countries, and China revises its position to some degree," Mr. Shi said.

Beijing's evolving behavior at the U.N. is driven partly by its rising economic power and its widening web of global ties as Chinese companies expand internationally, analysts say. That gives it a vested interest in the internal affairs of other countries.

Dozens of Chinese companies operate in Libya, where nearly 36,000 Chinese citizens lived before being extracted by China's government when the violence flared up. It is now more important for China to be seen as playing a constructive role in crises involving other major powers like the U.S.

"China used to have a rigid non-interference policy," Dennis Blair, the Obama administration's former Director of National Intelligence, said in an interview Friday in Beijing, where he has been meeting with Chinese energy officials last week. "Now, they are taking a more mature, sophisticated view of what their interests are."

Beijing risks being seen as having a double standard in the wake of the Libya vote, said Shen Dingli, a professor of international relations at Fudan University in Shanghai, as it tacitly supports military intervention against Libya but continues to oppose it in matters closer to home. "China should have one principle," he said.