UFA, May 5. /TASS/. The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) is likely to approve the application of Chinese ice hockey club Red Star Kunlun to join the Russia-based league, KHL President Dmitry Chernyshenko said on Wednesday.

"The Chinese club has submitted all required documents by the earlier set deadline [April 30]," Chernyshenko said. "The documents are analyzed. In case they are approved, and we believe that they will be approved, the club will be playing in the league starting next season."

In mid-March, President of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation Vladislav Tretiak, Chairman of the KHL Board of Directors Gennady Timchenko and Chairman of Beijing-based Red Star Kunlun board of directors Ngok Yan Yu signed an agreement of intentions on the admission of the first-ever Chinese hockey club to the KHL.

Currently, 28 clubs are playing in the KHL, including Barys from Astana (Kazakhstan), Dinamo from Minsk (Belarus) and Dinamo from Riga (Latvia), Jokerit from Helsinki (Finland), Medvescak from Zagreb (Croatia) and Slovan from Bratislava (Slovakia).

The Kontinental Hockey League is an international league set up to promote ice hockey in Russia and other European and Asian states. KHL organizes matches of the Russian ice hockey championships.