China urges de-escalation of Ukraine crisis

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Wednesday that China urges all parties involved in the Ukraine crisis to exercise restraint and "de-escalate the situation as soon as possible" after leaders of Ukraine and Russia traded barbs over the crisis.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Tuesday that his country's drones would make Russia's airspace "completely unsafe" for the duration of the military conflict, drawing accusations of "state terrorism" from Russian President Vladimir Putin, AFP reported.

"Dialogue and negotiations are the only viable way out of the Ukraine crisis," Guo said at a daily press briefing in Beijing.

"China urges all parties to remain calm and exercise restraint, work together to de-escalate the situation as soon as possible, and create conditions for a political settlement of the crisis," he added.