China backs all efforts to achieve peace, FM says

China has reiterated its commitment to supporting all peace efforts aimed at achieving a political solution to the Ukraine crisis and expressed its hope for a fair, lasting and binding peace agreement acceptable to all parties concerned.

On Saturday, Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, at Sybiha's request, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany and vowed that China will continue to play a constructive role in the political settlement of the crisis and in the realization of peace.

Ukraine values China's significant influence as a major country and appreciates its "objective and balanced" position, Sybiha said, adding that Ukraine expects China to play an important role in achieving comprehensive, fair and sustainable peace.

When addressing the conference on Friday, Wang also emphasized the need to resolve the crisis through dialogue and consultation, saying he hopes that all parties directly involved in the matter, as well as other stakeholders, would be able to participate in peace talks in due course.

"Any conflict ultimately finds its resolution at the negotiating table," he said, adding that China welcomes all efforts dedicated to peace, including the recent consensus between the United States and Russia on peace talks.

Because the conflict unfolded on European soil, he highlighted the importance of Europe's role in fostering peace and addressing the root causes of the crisis, in order to establish a balanced, effective and sustainable security framework to ensure long-term stability in the region.

"China is not the instigator of this crisis, nor is it a direct party to it. However, it is not standing idle, nor is it seeking to exploit the situation," Wang said, adding that the country has instead relentlessly striven for peace.

One day after the conflict started, China proposed a political settlement through dialogue and later sent special envoys for shuttle diplomacy.