Chinese envoy calls for restraint over alleged Estonia airspace incident

A Chinese envoy on Monday called for calm and restraint over the alleged intrusion of Estonia's airspace by Russian fighter jets.

"China urges the parties concerned to remain calm and exercise restraint, clarify facts and dispel doubts through dialogue and communication, avoid misunderstanding and misjudgment, and prevent the situation from expanding or escalating," said Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, at an emergency meeting of the Security Council.

China always maintains that countries should follow the purposes and principles of the UN Charter in handling international relations, he said.

The Estonia airspace incident and the drone incident in Poland are both spillover effects of the Ukraine crisis. They reflect the lack of mutual trust and growing suspicions among the parties, and illustrate the complex and sensitive nature of the current European security situation, said Geng.

As long as the Ukraine crisis remains unresolved and the fighting continues, similar incidents are likely to recur. Therefore, the urgent imperative and fundamental solution is to realize the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis as soon as possible, and to build a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture, he said.

During Monday's meeting, Estonia accused Russia of violating its airspace on Friday. The Russian representative denied the charge.