PARIS (AFP) - China faced growing calls from Western governments on Friday for the release of jailed dissident Liu Xiaobo after the veteran democracy campaigner was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize.

Despite advance warnings that honouring Liu would be regarded as an unfriendly gesture, Norway's government was among the first to congratulate the 54-year-old who was handed an 11-year sentence for subversion in 2009.

Rights groups also hailed the announcement, saying all prisoners of conscience serving sentences in China should henceforth be released.

As Beijing fumed that the Norwegian Nobel committee had "violated" the integrity of its award, statements of support for Liu by European powers would have done little to soothe its anger.

"This decision embodies the defence of human rights everywhere in the world," said France's Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner.

"France, like the European Union, expressed its concern after his arrest and has called for him to be released on a number of occasions. She repeats that call," he added, in a statement from his office.

There was a similar response from the German government.

"The (German) government would like to see him released soon and receive his prize in person," spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters. "The government has pressed for his release in the past and will continue to do so."

And European Union chief Jose Manuel Barroso, fresh from a fractious summit with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, said the award served as a rallying call for other pro-democracy campaigners.

"The decision of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee is a strong message of support to all those around the world who, sometimes with great personal sacrifice, are struggling for freedom and human rights," Barroso said, although he stopped short of calling for the dissident's release.

"These values are at the core of the European Union," Barroso added.

The prime minister of Norway, hosts of the peace prize, also made a point of congratulating Liu within minutes of the announcement in Oslo.

"I would like to congratulate Liu Xiaobo, who has been awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize for his work to promote democracy and human rights," Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement.

The secretary of the Nobel committee, Geir Lundestad, said last month China's Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying had warned him when visiting Oslo that attributing the prize to a Chinese dissident would be interpreted as an "unfriendly gesture" that could harm the Norwegian-Chinese relationship.

Stoltenberg on Friday stressed his country's "close and extensive cooperation with China."

"Our ties are longstanding and cover all the areas that link our countries together. Discussions of human rights issues are part of these relations," he said.

The five members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, who pick the Peace Prize laureate, are appointed by Norway's parliament but are independent of the government and the legislature.

London-based rights group Amnesty International said Liu was a "worthy winner" and expressed hope that the award would keep the spotlight on the struggle for fundamental freedoms waged by Liu and others in China.

"This award can only make a real difference if it prompts more international pressure on China to release Liu, along with the numerous other prisoners of conscience languishing in Chinese jails for exercising their right to freedom of expression," Catherine Baber, Amnesty's deputy Asia-Pacific director.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch said the award underscored an urgent need for rights reforms in China.

In a statement it reiterated "its longstanding call for the release of Liu" calling the subversion charges which led to his jailing last year "spurious".

"This award will no doubt infuriate the Chinese government by putting its human rights record squarely back into the international debate," said Sophie Richardson, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. "But this Nobel Prize honors not only Liu's unflinching advocacy; it honors all those in China who struggle daily to make the government more accountable."