France’s Macron says he will visit China in April

PARIS (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday he will visit China in early April, in part to seek Chinese help with ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

China called for a comprehensive ceasefire in Ukraine on Friday and has put forward a 12-point peace plan.

“The fact that China engages in peace efforts is a good thing,” Macron told reporters at an agricultural fair in Paris.

“China must help us put pressure on Russia so that it never uses chemical or nuclear weapons, (an effort) which China has already made, and that it stops its aggression as a precondition for talks,” he added.

(Reporting by GV De Clercq; Editing by Hugh Lawson)