China's Foreign Ministry said Monday, December 19, it supports a new, beefed-up draft resolution on the violence in Syria presented by Russia to the UN Security Council last week.

The proposal offers a chance for the 15-nation panel to overcome deadlock and deliver its first statement of purpose on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on nine months of protests which has killed 5,000 people according to the UN and provoked Western and Arab League sanctions on Damascus.

"If there are discussions at the Security Council on the Syrian situation they should be conducive toward ameliorating the tense state of affairs, pushing political dialogue, bridging differences and maintaining peace and stability in the region," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said.

"China supports the Russian proposal and applauds Russia's hard work at trying to resolve the Syrian crisis, and is willing to maintain contacts with all sides on this," he told a regular news briefing, without elaborating, Reuters reported.