ISTANBUL

All parties must “seriously learn from the hard lessons of the Ukraine crisis,” according to China’s top diplomat.

“Apart from seriously impacting Europe, the Ukraine crisis has produced a negative spillover effect spreading around the world,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a Sunday night phone call with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto.

“For the sake of long-term interests, all parties should explore building a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture to achieve lasting peace and security,” he said, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement.

Wang also reiterated that “China is not a party to the Ukraine crisis,” referring to criticism aimed at Beijing for its refusal to directly condemn Russia’s war on Ukraine.

“We have not stood by, nor will we add fuel to the fire. We have always unswervingly and perseveringly promoted peace talks,” he said.

On the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Indonesia earlier this month, Wang said all his counterparts at the summit “were deeply concerned about this (Ukraine crisis), and China has put forward an initiative to cope with food and energy security.”

During the conversation, Szijjarto said China has never been “a rival of Europe, but a partner that brings cooperation opportunities,” according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

He informed Wang of the current situation in Europe, “especially the economic and financial challenges faced by Hungary due to the spillover of the Ukraine crisis.”

“Hungary will continue to dedicate itself to promoting EU-China cooperation that features mutual respect, fairness and mutual benefit,” Szijjarto said.​​​​​​​