China on Wednesday urged the United States to "correct its ways" after a damning U.S. Senate report detailed use of torture by the CIA.

"China has consistently opposed torture," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a regular briefing.

"We believe the U.S. side should reflect upon itself, correct its ways and earnestly respect and abide by the rules of international conventions."

Rights groups say China's own justice system is riddled with abuses and that it is not uncommon for confessions to be extracted through torture.

Beijing says it attaches great importance to human rights and that it carries out detentions in accordance with the law.

In a report that has drawn international calls for criminal prosecution, the U.S. Senate said that CIA torture of al-Qaida suspects was far more brutal than acknowledged and failed to produce useful intelligence.