China calls for restraint in Ukraine, rejects the term ’invasion’

China reiterated on Thursday a call for all parties involved in the situation in Ukraine to exercise restraint and rejected a foreign journalist's description of Russia's actions as an invasion.

The comments were made by foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying at a regular daily briefing.

"China is closely watching the latest situation, and we call on all parties to maintain restraint and prevent the situation from getting out of control," Hua Chunying said.

Beijing has trod a cautious line on Ukraine as Moscow massed thousands of troops on the borders, and criticised the West for new sanctions after Russia ordered troops into two breakaway Ukrainian regions it now recognises as independent.

Hua on Thursday refused to call the military action an "invasion", labelling the term "prejudiced", and dodged questions on whether China was in contact with Russian and Ukrainian leaders.

"The Ukraine issue has a very complicated historical background" and was the result of "various factors," Hua told reporters.

China has blamed the United States and its Western allies in recent weeks for "hyping up" the crisis, with Hua saying at an earlier briefing on Wednesday that the US was "adding fuel to the fire." (Reuters and NDTV)