German multinational Daimler AG, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, has apologized to the Chinese Ambassador to Germany for quoting the Dalai Lama, who is considered a separatist in China trying to split up the country, in an earlier post on Mercedes-Benz's main Instagram account, the Xinhua News Agency reported late on Wednesday night.

In a letter to the Chinese Ambassador to Germany, Shi Mingde, Daimler Chairman Dieter Zetsche and Hubertus Troska, a board member responsible for the company's China market, said that Daimler "completely and without any reservation" realizes the seriousness of this incident and deeply regrets this negligent mistake that has caused pain for the Chinese people, according to Xinhua.

The letter also noted that Daimler has no intention to question or challenge China's sovereignty and territorial integrity in any form.

"Daimler AG would never support or assist any attempt to subvert or destroy China's sovereignty and territorial integrity," the letter said, according to Xinhua, adding that the company hopes to continue cooperating with China and contributing to Chinese society, while at the same time sharing China's development opportunities.

Daimler's apology comes after an initial apology issued by Mercedes-Benz's China unit, Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Services Co, which prompted further outrage on Wednesday with a response from the Chinese foreign ministry, a critical commentary from the People's Daily and calls from the Chinese public for an official apology from the company's headquarters in Germany, since they were in fact the ones responsible for the post. 

Asked about the incident on Wednesday, Geng Shuang, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, urged foreign companies to follow basic rules and customs in China, while stressing China's rising confidence and openness.

"China will be more confident and more open in the new era. We will continue to cooperate with foreign companies and welcome foreign companies to share China's development opportunities. Certainly, during this process, we also hope foreign companies will ensure basic compliance" with China's rules, Geng said at a briefing.

Geng noted that "no matter where you are, in China or in foreign countries, correcting a mistake as soon as you recognize it is the most basic principle for being human or for doing things."

A commentary on the people.com.cn on Wednesday said that by quoting the Dalai Lama, who is known around the world for trying to split China up under the name of "autonomy," Mercedes-Benz has not only offended the Chinese people, but also challenged them.

"If [such actions] continue to hurt the feelings of the Chinese people without engaging in true reflection, any car company - no matter how big - will not be able to move on [from its mistakes]," it warned.

Some netizens also commented that the initial apology released by the Beijing branch of Mercedes-Benz on Sina Weibo should have been released by Mercedes-Benz's headquarters in Germany on Instagram, where the post in question first appeared.

Beijing Mercedes-Benz apologized on Tuesday and said that the post was deleted.