China willing to strive persistently for peace: senior diplomat

China is willing to work together with the international community to avoid further deterioration of the Ukraine situation and to strive persistently for peace, a senior Chinese diplomat has said on Saturday.

Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks when meeting with Dmytro Kuleba, Ukrainian foreign minister, on the sidelines of the 59th Munich Security Conference.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said that China and Ukraine are strategic partners, and the people of two countries have enjoyed friendly exchanges for a long time.

China once again thanked the Ukrainian side for its help to evacuate the overseas Chinese nationals in emergency, and appreciated Ukraine's stance for always adhering to the one-China principle, he said.

Wang expressed his hope that the relations between the two sides will continue its stable development.

On the Ukraine issue, China has always been standing on the side of peace and dialogue, and always insisted on promoting peace talks, Wang said, adding that China does not want to see the Ukraine crisis protracted and escalate.

In his part, Kuleba said that during the past year, Ukraine and China have maintained communication.

No other countries wants to realize peace more than Ukraine, he said, noting that Ukraine valued China's international status and important influence, as well as China's stance on advocating political settlement.

Ukraine expects China to continue playing a constructive role, Kuleba said.