BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday told visiting Hungarian leader Viktor Orban that world powers should help Russia and Ukraine re-start direct peace talks, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
"The international community should create conditions and provide assistance for the two sides to resume direct dialogue and negotiations," Xi told Orban, adding: "Only when all major powers exert positive energy rather than negative energy can the dawn of a ceasefire in this conflict appear as soon as possible."
Orban, who has recently visited Moscow and Kyiv, said earlier his unannounced trip to the Chinese capital was a "Peace mission 3.0".
The visit comes a day before NATO is due to hold a summit to mark its 75th anniversary, with setbacks in Ukraine set to dominate discussions, and follows Orban's surprise trips to Russia and Ukraine in the past week.
CCTV said Xi and Orban's talks "focused on in-depth communication on the Ukrainian crisis".
"Xi Jinping appreciated Orban's efforts to promote a political solution to the Ukrainian crisis and elaborated on China's views and propositions," the broadcaster reported.
"Xi Jinping stressed that it is in the interests of all parties to cease fire and seek a political solution as soon as possible," CCTV said in a readout.
"The current focus is to abide by the three principles of 'no spillover of the battlefield, no escalation of the war, and no fueling of the flames by all parties' to cool down the situation as soon as possible," it added.