Shoigu noted China's initiatives to find a peaceful solution to the Ukrainian conflict

China advocates the need to eliminate the root causes of the Ukrainian conflict and establish a lasting long-term peace. This was announced on April 24 by the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Sergei Shoigu.

"In contrast to the bellicose rhetoric of the West, Beijing calls for abandoning escalation and moving on to finding solutions aimed at achieving long-term sustainable peace. We especially appreciate that China notes the need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict," he said in an interview with TASS.

Shoigu added that Russia appreciates China's efforts in finding ways to peacefully resolve the conflict in Ukraine. According to him, China is a responsible member of the international community, acting on the basis of its own decisions.

Crossing views: Putin and Xi discuss the situation around Ukraine

As well as the prospects for building relations with the U.S. given Trump's rise to power

On April 20, Chinese journalist Tong Xiaohua noted Russia's desire for peace. According to her, the truce announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin in Ukraine in honor of Easter showed that Moscow really wants a peaceful settlement of the conflict.