Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that China opposes any moves that “add fuel to the flames” in Ukraine.
Blinken said that the world would be watching to see which nations stand up for the principles of freedom and sovereignty.
The two spoke by phone on Saturday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
Wang called for negotiations to resolve the immediate crisis, as well as talks on creating a balanced European security mechanism. Wang said the US and Europe should pay attention to the negative impact of NATO’s eastward expansion on Russia’s security.
The US State Department says Blinken underscored to his Chinese counterpart that the world is acting in unison in response to Russian aggression and will ensure that Moscow will pay a high price.
China has broken with the US, Europe and others that have imposed sanctions on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine.
China says that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations should be respected, but that sanctions create new issues and disrupt the process of political settlement.
Biden speaks Zelenskyy, pledges support
US President Joe Biden, in a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, welcomed decisions by Visa and Mastercard to suspend their operations in Russia, the White House said.
"President Biden noted his administration is surging security, humanitarian, and economic assistance to Ukraine and is working closely with Congress to secure additional funding," a White House readout of the call added.
Separately, Zelenskyy noted in a tweet that the phone call also included the "continuation of sanctions" against Moscow.
Russia intensifies aerial, ground offence on Ukraine's port city
Russian forces have intensified shelling in the port city of Mariupol, including with the use of aeroplanes, the city's mayor has said.
“The city is in a very, very difficult state of siege,” Vadym Boychenko told Ukrainian TV.
“Relentless shelling of residential blocks is ongoing, airplanes have been dropping bombs on residential areas."
Boychenko said that thousands of children, women and the elderly came under fire as they arrived in the morning for a possible evacuation through a safe passage corridor.
The mayor added that Russia had promised to stop the shelling of Mariupol, a port city of 430,000, and Volnovakha, a city in the east, but violated the ceasefire.
Russia has made significant advances in the south, clearly seeking to cut off Ukraine’s access to the sea. Capturing Mariupol, which has been fending off the attack for six days, could allow Russia to build a land corridor to Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.
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