China urges peaceful solution to Syrian crisis

China stressed on Wednesday that the Syrian crisis should be addressed peacefully, as concerns have risen about the possibility of other countries providing weapons to the opposition in the violence-wracked country. "Under current conditions, all concerned parties should keep the peace and stability of the Middle East in mind and address the Syrian crisis peacefully," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily news briefing in response to a question about the possibility of countries providing arms for the Syrian opposition. "All concerned parties should make more efforts to ease tensions and seek a political solution, as well as prevent the violence and conflicts from escalating," China's (Xinhua) news agency quoted Hong as saying. Hong said China is studying the upcoming Friends of Syria meeting, which is scheduled for Friday in Tunis.