The paper calls for China to immediately resume negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
(Photo: Moment/Getty Images)
Beijing China has called for a ceasefire and peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. The demands are part of a twelve-point plan published by the State Department on Friday morning. However, the document does not contain any concrete proposals as to what a peace plan for Ukraine could look like.
On the other hand, there are very explicit calls for an end to Western sanctions against Russia, measures to secure nuclear facilities and the call to ensure grain exports. In addition, the proposal largely reiterates existing Chinese positions.
Since the beginning of the war, the Chinese government has tried to portray itself as a neutral mediator. However, she never condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In return, she repeatedly accuses the US and NATO of having provoked the conflict and criticizes Western sanctions. During a visit to Moscow, China’s highest-ranking foreign politician, Wang Yi, recently emphasized that he wanted to deepen relations with Russia.
Due to the close partnership with Russia, many Western politicians do not believe China’s role as a neutral mediator. Observers, on the other hand, assume that the Chinese government wants to use the paper to win over countries in the so-called global South.
This is supported by the fact that securing grain exports plays a prominent role in the proposal. China calls for the implementation of the Black Sea Grains Initiative. It goes on to say, “The Global Food Security Cooperation Initiative proposed by China offers a viable solution to the global food crisis.” The demands for the protection of nuclear power plants and the call to renounce nuclear weapons and bio-chemical weapons are also strikingly concrete.
Standard allegations against USA
In other points, China reaffirms its previous positions, such as that the sovereignty of all states must be preserved and legitimate security interests must be taken into account. In addition, Beijing is again calling for an “end to a Cold War mentality”. Diplomats see these formulations as a clear indication of Russia’s argument that it has to defend itself against the United States and NATO.
There are no “so-called legitimate security concerns that could justify this war of aggression and such a violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and political independence,” stressed Jorge Toledo, EU ambassador to China on Friday in Beijing.
Most recently, China’s highest-ranking foreign politician emphasized during a visit that he wanted to deepen relations with Russia.
(Photo: AP)
The renowned China expert Scott Kennedy from the US think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) described the Chinese proposal as “stillborn”. He seems more like “an idealistic wish list that would benefit Russia more than Ukraine”.
At the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi surprised everyone by announcing a plan for a “political solution to the Ukraine crisis”. The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had welcomed the Chinese initiative in the run-up to the publication. The fact that China has started talking about peace in Ukraine is “not a bad thing,” Zelenski said at a Friday news conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.
China again abstained on Thursday from voting on a non-binding UN General Assembly resolution calling for an end to Russia’s war of aggression. 141 of the 193 member states voted in favor of the proposal.
US increases pressure on China
In the past few weeks, the US has significantly increased the pressure on China. They accuse the government of supporting Russia and even considering arms deliveries. China denies the allegations. On the contrary, the United States has been supplying weapons without interruption since the beginning of the war, a Foreign Ministry spokesman emphasized in Beijing last week.
>> Read here: UN votes for Ukraine resolution with a clear majority – Baerbock criticizes China
In recent weeks there have been increasing indications that Chinese companies are supplying so-called dual-use goods to Russia that can be used there for military purposes. On Friday, the US government wants to announce a new package of sanctions against Russia, which will also punish Chinese companies. “China-based companies or Chinese sub-organizations of companies in Europe” that are “actively involved in circumventing” Western sanctions against Russia are affected, said top US diplomat Victoria Nuland on Thursday.
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