A Chinese envoy on Monday called for restraint to avoid further escalation of tension between Russia and Ukraine.
Wu Haitao, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told the UN Security Council that China has noted the altercation between Russian and Ukrainian naval ships in the waters near the Kerch Strait, adding that China is "concerned with the tension arising thereof."
"China hopes and calls for the relevant parties to exercise restraint to avoid any further escalation of tension and properly resolve the relevant issues through dialogues and consultations," said Wu.
An emergency meeting of the Security Council was called for on Monday morning over the escalating situation, which was chaired by Wu.
On Sunday, the Ukrainian Navy said that Russian forces opened fire and seized three Ukrainian ships near the Kerch Strait, which separates the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.
Six Ukrainian military sailors were wounded in the attack and two of them were in serious condition, the Ukrainian Navy said.
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said that three Ukrainian ships, namely Berdyansk, Nikopol and Yany Kapu, breached the Russian border and conducted dangerous maneuvers in spite of orders of the accompanying vessels from the FSB and Russia's Black Sea Fleet.
