A TOP Chinese envoy was preparing today to visit Ukraine and Russia to seek a breakthrough to end Moscow’s invasion.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s government says it is neutral in the 15-month-old conflict and wants to play a mediating role. 

Beijing proposed a peace plan in February, but that was met with a muted response from the United States, their allies and Ukraine, which insist that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces must withdraw.

The US and its allies appear content to funnel more military hardware into the area, rather than attempt to find a pathway to peace between Russia and Ukraine.

Li Hui, a former Chinese ambassador to Moscow, will also visit Poland, France and Germany, according to the Foreign Ministry, which gave no other schedule details.

President Xi spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky by phone last month, setting the stage for the diplomatic push.

The trip “expresses China’s commitment to promoting peace and negotiations,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Friday, adding that Beijing wishes to prevent an “escalation of the situation.”

Having previously avoided involvement in conflicts between other countries, China has begun to play a leading role as a global peace broker.

Beijing was instrumental in arranging talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran in March that led the Middle Eastern rivals to restore diplomatic relations following a seven-year break.

This has paved the way for peace in Yemen, where Tehran and Riyadh backed different sides in the long-running war, the latter supported by Britain, the United States and a regional coalition.

China has friendly relations with Moscow as well as economic leverage as the biggest buyer of Russian oil and gas now that the US and its allies have ended most purchases.

Mr Xi’s government sees Russia and many countries of the global South as its partners in opposing US domination of global affairs.