Zelensky says China working hard to 'prevent' countries from attending peace summit

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused China of working hard to stop countries from going to a peace summit.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused China on Sunday of working hard to stop countries from going to a peace summit, which Beijing has publicly criticised because Russia is not invited.

Mr. Zelensky made the remarks at a security forum in Singapore as he sought to rally support for the conference and appealed for more military aid for Ukraine, which has been ceding ground to Russian troops.

"China, unfortunately, is working hard today to prevent countries from coming to the peace summit," Mr. Zelensky told reporters on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, which draws defence officials from around the world.

Beijing believes the conference "should have the recognition of Russia and Ukraine, equal participation of all parties and fair discussion of all peace plans", foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a regular news conference on Friday.

"Otherwise, it is difficult for the conference to play a substantive role in restoring peace," she said.

Mr. Zelensky also expressed disappointment that "some world leaders" had not signed up to the conference, with China signalling Xi Jinping will not attend while U.S. President Joe Biden is yet to commit.

China said it would be "difficult" for it to attend if Russia did not participate, which Ukraine has rejected.