Chinese foreign minister expressed concerns to its Ukrainian counterpart over its long-running conflict with Russia

In a rare phone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Thursday (16 March), China's foreign minister says Beijing is concerned about the year-old grinding conflict with Russia spinning out of control and urged talks on a political solution with Moscow.

Qin Gang told Dmytro Kuleba that China has "always upheld an objective and fair stance on the Ukraine issue, has committed itself to promote peace and advancing negotiations and calls on the international community to create conditions for peace talks," China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

Kuleba later tweeted that he and Qin "discussed the significance of the principle of territorial integrity."

"I underscored the importance of (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's)'s Peace Formula for ending the aggression and restoring just peace in Ukraine," wrote Kuleba, who spoke the same day with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

In 2022, China declared it had a "no-limits" friendship with Russia and has refused to condemn Moscow's invasion — even while declaring that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries be respected. Beijing has also condemned Western sanctions and accused NATO and the United States of provoking Russia into military action.