China is promoting a proposal to end the grinding war in Ukraine, which has gotten a tepid welcome from both sides of the conflict. Chinese President Xi Jinping will fly to Russia the next week to attend discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the two nations said on Friday.
The trip that President Xi will take from March 20-22 follows China’s publication of a 12-point plan for “a political resolution of the Ukraine crisis” the previous month, as well as a senior Chinese diplomat’s call for negotiations with Ukraine’s foreign minister on Thursday. Xi will visit Ukraine on March 20-22.
The proposal asks for the protection of people as well as mutual respect between Russia and Ukraine regarding each country’s territorial integrity.
But, the United States and NATO have said that Beijing’s attempts to mediate are not credible since the Chinese government has refrained from denouncing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow refers to as a “special military operation.”
Wang Wenbin, a spokeswoman for the Chinese foreign ministry, said that President Xi’s visit to Russia, which was his first trip there in almost four years, was in part to promote “peace,” although he did not specifically reference the conflict in Ukraine.
He stated that the presidents will also share thoughts on significant problems affecting the region and the world, as well as improve trust between the two countries and develop economic relations.
In a statement, the Kremlin claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping will talk about “hot topics of further development of comprehensive partnership ties and strategic collaboration between Russia and China.” Moreover, there was no mention of Ukraine in the statement.
According to a number of sources in the media, after the conclusion of his trip to Russia, Xi would be speaking on the phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. There has been no response from China over the call.
During Putin’s visit to Beijing in February 2022 for the opening of the Winter Olympics, China and Russia made the announcement of a partnership with “no limits.” This came just a few days before Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, which set off the largest conflict seen in Europe since World War Two.
Since then, Beijing and Moscow have not stopped reiterating how strong their connections are to one another. Since the invasion, bilateral commerce has increased significantly, and China has become Russia’s largest consumer of oil, which is an essential source of money for Moscow.
Since the invasion, tens of thousands of people have been dead in Ukraine, and millions more have been forced to flee their homes. But, there is presently little indication that either side is actively working to put an end to the violence.
Nevertheless, Ukraine subsequently said that it was open to “elements of the plan,” despite the fact that it had taken problem with Beijing’s recommendations since they did not state that Russia should retreat behind boundaries that have been in existence since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Russia has expressed its appreciation for Beijing’s proposal and said that it will conduct a “nuanced analysis” of the idea. Nevertheless, Moscow has also stated that it does not see any signs of a peaceful conclusion to the conflict at this time.
According to Moscow, Ukraine has no choice but to acknowledge Russia’s annexation of four provinces in the country’s east and south, as well as the loss of Crimea, the peninsula in the Black Sea that Russia occupied by force in 2014.
Kyiv and its Western supporters have accused Russia’s operations in Ukraine of being a territorial grab in the imperialistic manner. Moscow has said that its actions in Ukraine are a defensive pushback against a hostile and aggressive West.