China said on Friday that social media companies should not selectively create obstacles for media agencies, responding to Facebook Inc decision to start labeling state-controlled media organisations.

Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters during a daily briefing that any media agency operating in line with relevant laws of various countries should be treated equally.

The world's biggest social network will apply the label to Russia's Sputnik, Iran's Press TV and China's Xinhua News, according to a partial list Facebook provided.

(Reporting by Huizhong Wu; writing by Se Young Lee; editing by John Stonestreet)