U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has warned China not to use legitimate security concerns as an excuse to crack down on dissidents.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (l) speaks as New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark looks on during a press conference at the Government House, Auckland, 26 Jul 2008

At a joint news conference with New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark in Auckland Saturday, Rice said China should showcase not just the Olympics, but an attitude of openness and tolerance.

Neither Rice nor the prime minister expressed any concerns about the safety of U.S. or New Zealand athletes.

Global intelligence analysts Stratfor and Intelcenter said Friday that a Uighur separatist group, the Turkestan Islamic Party, has claimed credit for several attacks, including the May 5 Shanghai bus bombing that killed two people.  

The Internet intelligence analysts said the Islamic group threatened further attacks on Chinese cities that will host Olympic games.

The Turkestan Islamic Party is an ethnic Uighur and Muslim group seeking to create an independent state out of China's westernmost, heavily Muslim Xinjiang province.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.