Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping (photo from last year) will meet for talks in Moscow this week
Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Russia to meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to show solidarity against what he describes as Western hegemony, while Xi will present China as a global peacemaker bent on brokering an end to the Ukraine war.
Xi will become the first leader to shake hands with Putin since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader on Friday over allegations of deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia since the start of the war. It is a charge rejected by Moscow.
Russia will present Xi’s visit, his first since he secured an unprecedented third term this month, as evidence that it has a strong friend ready to stand by it against the West, which it views as hostile and which it says is trying to isolate and defeat it.
For the Chinese president, this visit will be an extended diplomatic bridge, after China issued a 12-point proposal to solve the Ukrainian crisis, but Beijing is also seeking at the same time to strengthen relations with its ally, Moscow.
In an article published as the announcement of his visit to Moscow began, Xi said that China’s proposal, which was issued last month, reflects world views and seeks to avoid the consequences of war. He also acknowledged that the solutions are not easy.
It is likely that Ukraine and its Western backers will reject any attempt to secure a cease-fire as nothing more than a ploy to buy Putin time to consolidate his position and delay an expected large-scale Ukrainian counterattack.
While the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that he will not discuss peaceful settlements until after the Russian forces leave the territory of Ukraine.
China’s proposal to resolve the Russia-Ukraine war contains only general statements, as there is no concrete proposal on how to end the year-long war in which tens of thousands of people were killed, cities destroyed, and millions forced to flee.
Putin said, in an article for a Chinese newspaper published on the Kremlin’s website, that he had high hopes for the visit of his “old good friend” Xi, with whom he signed a “borderless” strategic partnership last year. He also welcomed China’s willingness to mediate.
“We are grateful for the balanced line … on the current events in Ukraine, for understanding their true background and causes. We welcome China’s willingness to play a constructive role in resolving the crisis,” Putin added.
The United States and its allies are deeply suspicious of China’s motives, after Beijing refused to condemn Russia and offer it an economic lifeline, at a time when other countries imposed sanctions on it. Both the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) recently accused China of considering supplying weapons to Russia and warned it against doing so. China denied the accusations.
In another context, justice ministers from around the world are meeting in London today to discuss support for the International Criminal Court after it issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin.
British Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab said: “We gather today in London united in one cause, which is to hold war criminals accountable for the atrocities committed in Ukraine during this unjust, unjustified and illegal invasion.”
Several EU countries will sign an agreement today in Brussels for the purchase of 155mm artillery shells for Ukraine, with the first orders for the purchase likely to be placed by the end of May. Ukraine believes that the supply of missiles is extremely important, as the two sides, Russia and Ukraine, launch thousands of missiles every day.
Heavy fighting continues in Ukraine in the eastern city of Bakhmut, with each side launching counterattacks. Since last summer, the Ukrainian forces have held out in Bakhmut, in a war battle that is the longest and bloodiest.
