"China and Russia are comprehensive strategic partners of coordination. China-Russia relations are based on non-alliance, non-confrontation and non-targeting of third countries," ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said.
China's position on the Ukraine crisis is "based on the merits of the matter itself," he said, without elaborating. "We always stand on the side of peace and justice." He then reiterated a description of the situation as "complex," refusing to back Kyiv outright.
Beijing's implicit support for Ukraine thus far has come in the form of one oft-repeated phrase: "The sovereignty and territorial integrity of every country should be respected and safeguarded. The aims and principles of the UN Charter should be upheld. This is China's consistent position, and is it a basic norm governing international relations that all countries should subscribe to."