Facebook is striking an apologetic tone after Burmese text posted on the website showed Chinese President Xi Jinping's name as "Mr. Shithole" in an English translation.

2 The translated post referred to Xi Jinping as 'Mr S***hole' After Facebook's Burmese to English translation kicked in, the government statement read: "Mr S***hole, President of China, arrives at ...

Translation tests of similar words that start with "xi" and "shi" in Burmese also produced "shithole", it added. China's foreign ministry declined comment. Facebook is blocked in mainland China.