China puts condition to attend Swiss peace conference on Ukraine

ISTANBUL

China on Monday said it would support any international peace conference on Ukraine which is also recognized by Russia, reported state media.

Beijing supports the “timely convening of an international peace conference that is recognized by both the Russian and Ukrainian sides,” said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.

She was responding to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s invite to Chinese and US leaders to join the peace summit next month in Switzerland.

Along with the participation by Moscow, Mao said the conference should “involve the equal participation of all parties and a fair discussion" on peace plans.

“China encourages all efforts that are conducive to a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine crisis,” said the ministry spokeswoman.

Zelenskyy extended the invitation to Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in a video recorded at the remains of a local printing house in Kharkiv that was destroyed in a missile strike on Thursday.

At least 16 people were killed in the attack.

Zelenskyy emphasized the importance of global efforts to end the war, specifically the upcoming Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland on June 15-16.

He added that the summit would show "who in the world really wants to end the war and not just claim the cease-fire which will inevitably be broken by Russian rockets and artillery just like it was dozens, dozens of times before."