China’s leader, Xi Jinping, and Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, spoke by telephone on Wednesday, in the first known contact between the two leaders since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky said he “had a long and meaningful phone call” with Xi. The Chinese state news media said the two leaders had discussed “the Ukraine crisis” and their nations’ bilateral relationship.

“I believe that this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations,” Zelensky said on Twitter.

Since the war began, Zelensky had repeatedly expressed interest in speaking with Xi. China, though it has declared itself neutral in the war, is a close partner of Russia, and many Western officials believe it may be the only country with enough clout with both Ukraine and Russia to help negotiate an end to the conflict.

But Chinese officials had long dodged questions about whether Xi would speak with Zelensky, even as the Chinese leader spoke or met President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia multiple times, including during a trip to Moscow on March 20. Before that visit, China had issued what it framed as a peace plan for Ukraine, seemingly positioning itself as a potential mediator. China and Russia’s joint statement after the visit made little mention of the war, instead focusing on deepening ties between the two countries.

Before the war, China-Ukraine ties had been strengthening. By 2019, China was Ukraine’s largest trading partner and the top importer of its barley and iron ore, according to a report by the Council on Foreign Relations. The last known contact between Xi and Zelensky was a phone call in January 2022, just weeks before the invasion, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic bilateral ties.

But after the invasion, the official Chinese news media adopted many of the Kremlin’s talking points and disinformation, accusing Nato of instigating the conflict.