ISTANBUL

China and Brazil on Tuesday voiced support for an early start to peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, an official statement said ahead of talks between Moscow and Kyiv this week in Istanbul.

A joint statement of support came after President Xi Jinping and his Brazilian counterpart Lula da Silva’s bilateral meeting in Beijing, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.

China and Brazil issued a joint statement “expressing support for an early start of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine,” Mao said on X.

Lula has been on a state visit to China since Sunday.

The statement came as Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Tuesday that Russia is continuing preparations for peace talks with Ukraine, scheduled for Thursday in the Turkish metropolis.

He did not give the names of the Russian delegation members, saying they would be released as soon as President Vladimir Putin “deems it necessary,” but Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and presidential aide Yury Ushakov are reportedly among its likely leaders.

The proposal for unconditional talks in Istanbul was made by Russian President Vladimir Putin during a press conference in Moscow on Sunday. Later, in a phone call with Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed Türkiye's readiness to host the meeting.

China and Brazil last year launched the "Friends of Peace" group on the Ukrainian crisis to gather the consensus of the Global South and create conditions for peace talks.