Partnership with Russia ‘unlimited’declarationNow, a year later, China is trying to convince the world that it is a neutral country that can help end the war in Ukraine. But it won’t be easy.
Wang Yi, China’s top diplomat and a member of the Communist Party’s Politburo, is expected to visit Moscow in the coming days. Mr Wang suggested a few days ago that he would present a new peace plan to end the war. The U.S. did not appreciate the effort, with Secretary of State Brinken accusing China of “not yet crossing the line” in supplying Russia with weapons, but was considering it internally.
At the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Mr. Brinken and Mr. Wang couldn’t agree on most issues, and the blame battle between the two sides made it clear that the US-China issue is much deeper than, say, the dispute over China’s balloon. let me know As war fatigue begins to appear in parts of the world, the war in Ukraine is becoming a key issue in leading international opinion for both sides.
US Secretary of State Brinken speaking at the Munich Security Conference
Photographer: Johannes Simon/Getty Images
Raphael Pantucci, a senior fellow at the Rajaratnam International Institute (RSIS) in Singapore and co-author on Chinese foreign policy, said: “There is no doubt that China is willing to make peace, but the plan seems unreliable. ‘ commented. “China needs to be seen as an independent mediator in order to be credible, but in this war China is clearly one sided,” he said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has yet to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky since the start of Russia’s invasion, but has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin four times. While China insists it didn’t support the aggression per se, it has repeatedly defended some of the reasons Russia entered the war, including its opposition to NATO expansion.
Still, the costs of defending Russia increased for China with each passing day. Beyond the short-term losses to the global economy, China is increasingly seen as a strategic competitor by the United States and Europe. The West has become more determined to thwart China’s dominance ambitions on Taiwan, and the prospect of multilateral export and investment restrictions and other measures that would stifle long-term growth potential has also increased.
China has not released details of the peace plan, but Wang said it would include a call to respect territorial integrity, protection of nuclear facilities and opposition to the use of biological and chemical weapons. This was quickly met with skepticism by diplomatic officials, with German Foreign Minister Beerbock stressing that the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine was an essential condition for peace.
Wang Yi, Politburo member of the Communist Party of China
Photographer:Johannes Simon/Getty Images
A European official with knowledge of China’s peace plan said it could include a ceasefire and a halt to arms deliveries to Ukraine. The official spoke on condition of anonymity. The United States and its allies expect Putin to offer similar views in a speech in Moscow on Thursday. The peace plan, which will be submitted as a UN resolution on the 24th, one year after the invasion, could compete with proposals by Ukraine-backed countries calling for the withdrawal of Russian troops and an end to the war.
China’s plan seems unlikely to succeed, but U.S. allies are concerned that it will gain sympathy among emerging nations and attract votes at the United Nations, the people said. Many countries outside the United States and Europe have refused to join sanctions against Russia, calling for negotiations and a ceasefire. However, previous attempts at arbitration have been entirely unsuccessful.
For China, presenting a peace plan will help portray Mr. Xi as an international politician, and the support it receives will also benefit China. Some Chinese participants at the Munich meeting were surprised that the United States and its allies equated China and Russia, and stressed the need to refute such perceptions.
news-rsf-original-reference paywall">Original title:China Looks to Convince World It Can Broker Russia-Ukraine Peace(excerpt)
