Western leaders give cool response to China’s plan for Ukraine peace talks

Nato secretary general says Beijing ‘does not have much credibility’ because of failure to condemn Russia’s invasion

• Russia-Ukraine war: latest updates

Western leaders have largely dismissed a peace plan for Ukraine laid out by China’s government, arguing that Beijing does not have the international credibility to act as a mediator in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

China’s government called for peace talks while urging all parties to avoid nuclear escalation and end attacks on civilians, in a statement which appeared to maintain Beijing’s stance that the west was fuelling the conflict and which analysts dismissed as anodyne.