A Danish news report says China's ruling communist party has urged provincial authorities to fight Western influence and intensify control of the Internet and the media.

The Danish daily Information said Tuesday that the party's powerful Central Committee had issued a classified document in March, calling for efforts to prevent foreign influence in China. The Information report says the document, leaked from the highest levels of China's power structure, also calls for efforts to improve the country's image abroad.

Party leaders are quoted as stating that “hostile forces inside and outside China” are trying to contain its development, defame its image and infiltrate its ideology and culture. The classified document is reported to order local leaders to ensure tighter control over foreign journalists who work in China, and over domestic dissenters.

The Danish report is available in English on the daily's website www.information.dk.

The Chinese government has repeatedly said that its objective is peaceful development and cooperation with nations around the world. But officials have often warned foreign counterparts against what they call interfering in China's affairs.

International politicians and rights groups have repeatedly criticized Beijing cracking down on dissidents.

In the wake of this year's unrest in the Arab world, China has stepped up a crackdown on activists and blocked attempts at peaceful gatherings in streets.

China's neighbors have protested over what they call aggressive behavior involving Chinese vessels in the South China Sea. Countries in the Asia-Pacific region have also expressed concern about China's military power, which appears to be growing along with its economy.