BEIJING, May 13. /TASS/. Beijing and Brasilia hope that Moscow and Kiev to launch a direct dialogue at the earliest opportunity in order to end the Ukraine crisis, according to a joint statement issued following Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s visit to China.
"China and Brazil express support for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s May 10 offer <...> for peace talks, as well as Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s positive statement," the document reads. "China and Brazil emphasize that Russia and Ukraine should launch a direct dialogue as soon as possible, which is the only way to end the conflict," the statement added.
The parties pointed out that in September 2024, China and Brazil had established the Friends of Peace group on the United Nations platform in order to unite the countries of the Global South with regard to the Ukraine crisis.
Speaking to reporters in the Kremlin in the early hours of May 11, Putin urged Kiev to resume direct talks suspended in 2022, without preconditions. The plan is to start dialogue in Istanbul on May 15. Putin also recalled that Russia had declared multiple ceasefires that Kiev consistently broke, including a recent truce during the celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory in the Great Patriotic War.
Vladimir Zelensky, in turn, announced plans to travel to Istanbul on Thursday. The statement came after US President Donald Trump urged Ukraine to immediately accept Putin’s offer for talks. Prior to that, Zelensky had insisted that a 30-day ceasefire should precede any negotiations with Moscow.