China is calling on Russia and Ukraine to cease fire and start peace talks as soon as possible, China’s envoy to the UN said on Friday.

Iran PressAmerica: China’s envoy to the UN Zhang Jun also called on the US and NATO to engage in a dialogue with Moscow to ensure indivisibility of security.

He made the statements in a speech at a UN Security Council meeting that was dedicated to an anniversary of the Minsk agreements.

"Although a deescalation was supposed to take place after the conclusion of the agreements, in fact there was an escalation and a large-scale conflict again," he said.

"If all the provisions of the Minsk agreements had been actually implemented, then the Ukrainian crisis, perhaps, would not have developed into what it has become today. The Ukrainian crisis is essentially the culmination of the security conflict in Europe, which is closely linked to the constant expansion of NATO to the east since the end of the Cold War," the diplomat said.

He added: "This is precisely the reason why Europe is now in such a difficult security situation. Europe and the whole world, if they maintain this mentality, will be in even greater trouble."

"We again call on Russia and Ukraine to cease fire and start peace talks as soon as possible," the diplomat said. "The US, the European Union and NATO should also sit down with Russia at the negotiating table to conduct a comprehensive, in-depth dialogue based on the principle of the indivisibility of security. They should discuss how to create a balanced, effective and lasting security architecture, to achieve common security." 219