China's reaction to Ukraine crisis sparks anger

Australia's prime minister Scott Morrison voiced concerns over the "lack of strong response" from China to the Ukraine crisis and criticised Beijing about reports it had eased trade curbs with Moscow by allowing imports of wheat from Russia.

Morrison called the wheat move "simply unacceptable".

Britain's foreign minister Liz Truss told her Chinese counterpart she expected Beijing to stand up for Ukraine's sovereignty, Truss said in a statement issued on Friday.

"I spoke to (Chinese) FM (Foreign Minister) Wang Yi about Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and made clear that Russia's actions are a flagrant breach of the UN Charter," Truss said in a statement following the call.

"As a permanent member of the UN Security Council we expect China to stand up for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity."