Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Friday he has urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to speak with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy about Kyiv’s peace plan to bring an end to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Sanchez is in China for talks aimed at boosting ties between Beijing and Madrid.
Speaking at a press conference at the Spanish embassy in Beijing, Sanchez said he had discussed “China’s position” on Russia’s war in Ukraine in meetings with Xi and other top Chinese officials.
He also accused Russia’s leader Vladimir Putin of seeking to “weaken” the EU’s “multilateral project for peace and welfare”.
“I encouraged President Xi to have a conversation with President Zelenskyy to learn first-hand about this peace plan of the Ukrainian government,” Sanchez said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly said he would be open to talks with Xi – an overture the Chinese leader has yet to respond to – despite multiple rounds of talks with Putin.
Beijing last month unveiled a 12-point paper calling for a “political settlement” of the crisis in Ukraine.
The document was immediately met with scepticism by Ukraine’s allies and was greeted with caution in Kyiv.
Sanchez on Friday also welcomed Beijing’s stance opposing the use of nuclear weapons in the conflict, as well as its stated support for “territorial integrity”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans last week to station tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus, a warning to the West as it steps up military support for Ukraine.