Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called for an immediate ceasefire in South Sudan as it became clear that peace talks were faltering.

Fighting broke out three weeks ago after former vice-president Riek Machar allegedly started a coup against President Salva Kiir.

China is the biggest investor in South Sudan's oil industry. It is the nation's largest export, but the industry has been wrecked by the conflict.

Mr Wang said China would do all it could to help restore stability in the region and support Ethiopian-led mediation efforts. He has been due to meet delegations from both side of the conflict.

Peace talks began in Addis Ababa on Saturday but the two sides had still not met for face-to-face discussions.

Mr Machar's side reportedly refuses to join discussions unless the release of political prisoners is on the agenda - but the Kiir camp only wants to talk about a ceasefire.

The government says those arrested are accused of capital offences and could not be investigated properly in such a short time.

UN estimates indicate that 200,000 people have been displaced by the fighting and that at least 1,000 people have died, though that week-old figure is considered conservative.

Mr Kiir accuses Mr Machar of launching a coup attempt against him, but reports suggest it was pro-Kiir troops that actually sparked the conflict.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir met Mr Kiir for the first time since the unrest began. It is the worst since the 2011 breakaway from Sudan.

"Armed conflict would never resolve a problem," the autocratic leader told reporters in South Sudanese capital Juba

"Any problem no matter how complicated can be solved at the negotiation table."

But Mr Kiir said that "taking power by military force is a crime" and urged the international community to condemn Mr Machar's alleged actions.

Most Chinese and Pakistani oil workers have reportedly left the country because of the violence

The government says flows from the oil-rich, rebel-held Unity State have stopped.