China welcomes the appointment of Lakhadar Brahimi, a veteran Algerian diplomat, as the joint special representative of the United Nations and the Arab League for Syria to replace Kofi Annan, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

Spokesman Qin Gang said that Brahimi, an experienced diplomat, is a suitable candidate for the post.

He said that China hopes Brahimi will adhere to the direction of a political solution for Syria, urge all parties in Syria to cease fire and end the violence as soon as possible and implement UN Security Council resolutions, Annan's six-point proposal and the Geneva communique agreed upon by the Action Group meeting of major world powers on June 30 so as to promote a peaceful, fair and appropriate resolution of the issue.

China will actively support and cooperate with Brahimi's mediation efforts, Qin said.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, along with Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby, announced Friday the appointment of Brahimi, who was Algeria's foreign minister from 1991 to 1993. He joined the United Nations in 1994, where he served in a variety of high-profile posts until retiring in 2005.