Xi tells Biden Ukraine war should end, lays no blame on Russia

Xi told Biden that conflicts and confrontations were in no-one's interests, according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement

Chinese President Xi Jinping told U.S. President Joe Biden in a video call on Friday that the war in Ukraine must end as soon as possible and called on NATO nations to hold a dialogue with Moscow, but did not assign blame to Russia for the invasion.

In the call, which lasted nearly two hours, Biden was expected to tell the Chinese leader that Beijing would pay a steep price if it directly supports Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a warning at a time of deepening acrimony between the world's two largest economies.

The White House did not immediately comment after the call