Chinese, Spanish FMs hold phone talks over Ukraine situation

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday held a phone conversation with Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares at the latter's request.

During their conversation, Albares congratulated China on the success of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games and the two sides exchanged views on the current situation in Ukraine.

The situation in Ukraine threatens peace and stability in Europe and, if left unchecked, will spill over across the entire international community, Albares said.

He expressed hope that the conflict in Ukraine will be put to an end as soon as possible through dialogue and diplomatic means and that China, as a great peace-loving country and a permanent member of the UN Security Council, will play an active role in promoting peace.

For his part, Wang said that as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China has been pushing for peace talks in its own way since the first day of the Ukraine crisis, and hopes that the fourth round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks can achieve new progress acceptable to all parties, accumulate factors conducive to ending the conflict and opening up a door to peace.

Some forces have been constantly smearing China's objective and just position on the Ukraine issue and creating disinformation, Wang warned, noting that China has always made its judgment according to the merits of the matter itself.

China maintains that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries should be respected, upholds the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and believes that legitimate security concerns of all parties should be addressed, said Wang.

China has the world's best record as a major country when it comes to peace and security, he said, adding that the Chinese side will continue to play a constructive role on multilateral occasions for the peaceful settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

The Ukraine crisis is the result of the accumulation and intensification of conflicts on security in Europe over the years, Wang said.

He added that the Chinese side encourages Russia and Ukraine to achieve a ceasefire through peace talks, and expressed his hope that Europe and Russia will launch dialogue and negotiations on an equal basis, and find reasonable solutions to their security concerns, so as to set up a balanced, effective and sustainable European security framework.

China has always opposed using sanctions to solve problems, let alone unilateral sanctions that has no basis in international law, which will undermine international rules and harm people's livelihood in all countries, Wang said.

China is not a party to the crisis, still less wants to be affected by the sanctions, and it has the right to safeguard its legitimate and lawful rights and interests, he added.

Noting that Spain is a solid force in Europe, Wang said he is confident that Spain can play a positive role in resolving the crisis peacefully.