BEIJING, May 5 -- China on Monday applauded constructive efforts made to free seven military observers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) held hostage in the eastern Ukraine town of Sloviansk by pro-Russian activists.

Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Hua Chunying made the remarks at a regular press conference.

A German-led Vienna Document inspection team and their Ukrainian escorts were detained in Sloviansk on April 25.

The observers, all Europeans, were part of a 12-member military verification team deployed last month by the Vienna-based OSCE in eastern Ukraine to monitor the political and security situation in the country following pro-Russia protests in the eastern region.

China hopes that parties concerned in Ukraine and the international community will continue to take measures to ease tension in Ukraine, abandon violence, resolve differences through political dialogue, and return to the track of a political resolution, said Hua.