China has long been trying to mediate in the Ukraine war.
(Photo: AP)
Beijing, Riga Chinese leader Xi Jinping has called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Xi stressed that China would “make its own efforts to end the war and ceasefire and restore peace as soon as possible,” according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
To this end, the government wants to send a special envoy for Eurasian affairs to Ukraine and other countries to hold talks with all parties on the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. So far, China had only called on all sides to talk, but had not taken any active steps to mediate.
On Twitter, Ukrainian President Zelensky praised the “long and meaningful conversation” with Xi. “I believe that this phone call and the appointment of the Ukrainian ambassador to China will give a strong impetus to the development of our bilateral relations,” Zelensky wrote.
So far, there have been great doubts about China’s role as a mediator. The Chinese government has never condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine. During his state visit to Moscow in late March, Xi called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin a “dear friend.” At the time, the two heads of state announced that they would further expand the partnership between the two countries.
China’s head of state has had five personal exchanges with Putin since the beginning of the war, and this is also the first time with Zelenskiy. Kyiv had expected this phone call weeks ago, immediately after Xi’s visit to Moscow.
On the anniversary of the start of the war at the end of February, the government presented a proposal for a “political solution to the Ukraine crisis”, in which, among other things, a ceasefire and peace talks were called for. It remained unclear what role China could or wants to play in possible peace talks. That could now change with the dispatch of a special envoy.
China’s Ukraine paper was met with skepticism from Western politicians. A ceasefire at this point in time would be tantamount to a “ratification of the Russian conquest,” US National Security Advisor Kirby emphasized at the time. There are fears that Russia would use the ceasefire to consolidate its positions in Ukraine and gather forces for new attacks on Ukraine. “You can’t negotiate with a gun at your temple,” stressed Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The previous special envoy for Eurasian affairs is former Chinese ambassador to Russia Li Hui. It is still unclear whether he will also take on the role of mediator agreed in the phone call between Xi and Zelenski.
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