China is backing South Africa as chair and host of this year's BRICS summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping said during telephone talks with South Africa's leader, according to the country's foreign ministry statement.
"China supports South Africa, as the rotating chair, in successfully hosting various BRICS cooperation activities this year," the statement read, adding that this year marks the "Year of South Africa" for BRICS.
Xi's statement came amid rumblings about the potential displacement of the BRICS summit, scheduled to take place in the South African city of Johannesburg.
South Africa is mulling legal options for Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the August summit since the ICC, of which South Africa is a member, had previously issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader, which Moscow has slammed as unlawful.
During the call, the president of China also noted that bilateral relations "enjoy special friendly relations like brothers," which develop on "shared future, jointly practice genuine multilateralism and making the international order more just and equitable.
"China-South Africa relations are of important strategic significance to safeguarding the common interests of developing countries and guiding China-Africa solidarity and cooperation," Xi said.
Apart from that, the Chinese leader welcomed the African Peace Initiative to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, calling it "a good thing."
The Brazzaville Foundation, which is arranging the African mission to Ukraine, announced Wednesday that African leaders are set to meet with Putin on June 17 in St. Petersburg.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is scheduled to meet with African leaders in Kiev a day earlier.
Russia has repeatedly voiced its openness to negotiations; however, Kiev has imposed a legislative ban on them. During a meeting at the G20, Zelensky stated that "there will be no Minsk 3," referring to previous treaties (called Minsk 1 and Minsk 2) focusing on resolving the crisis in the Donbass region.