Li Hui’s appeal came as Washington and many European nations are ramping up supplies of missiles, tanks and other weapons to Ukrainian forces, Aljazeera reported.
“If we really want to stop the war, save lives and achieve peace, we should stop sending weapons to the battlefield,” Li told reporters in Beijing on Friday.
“The painful lessons of how the Ukraine crisis developed to its current state merit deep reflection by all parties," he added.
Li said there are currently “many difficulties” in sitting down and engaging in talks to end the war. He added that those fighting the war are “not without points of consensus”.
“The two sides have not fully shut the door on peace talks,” Li insisted.
The Chinese envoy toured European capitals last month seeking to promote Ukraine peace talks.
In May, Li completed a 12-day tour of Kyiv, Warsaw, Paris, Berlin, Brussels and Moscow in what China said was a bid to find common ground for an eventual political settlement.
“The risk of escalation of the Russia-Ukraine war is still high,” Li said, adding that all sides must take concrete measures to “cool down the situation” and ensure the safety of nuclear facilities.
Western countries have been supplying military aid to Ukraine since the start of the war in February 2022. The aid evolved from artillery munitions and training in 2022 to heavier weapons, including tanks, later that year and in 2023.
The Kremlin, in turn, has repeatedly warned against continued arms deliveries to Kyiv. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia.
SKH/PR
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