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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held a telephone conversation with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for about an hour. This is the first contact between the two leaders since the war in Ukraine began. The message is received as a direct signal of China’s intentions to mediate in a possible peace negotiation on Ukrainian territory. Russia’s response was positive as well.
“As a permanent member of the UN Security Council and a great responsible country, we will not sit idly by or throw oil on the fire, much less try to take advantage of it,” Xi Jinping mentioned in his conversation with Zelensky, according to reports from the China Central Television.
Chinese President Xi Jinping told his Ukrainian counterpart that his country will send “special representatives” to Ukraine to act as mediators between the parties involved in seeking an agreement to reach peace, Chinese state media reported. asian giant.
For his part, Zelensky, through a publication on his social networks, declared: “I believe that this call, as well as the appointment of the Ukrainian ambassador to China, will give a strong impetus to the development of our bilateral relations.”
This conversation comes after kyiv expressed for months its interest in communicating directly with Beijing.
I had a long and meaningful phone call with ?? President Xi Jinping. I believe that this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations.
— Volodimir Zelensky (@ZelenskyyUa) April 26, 2023
China insists on arbitrating peace in Ukraine
In the call, the Chinese president was explicit in telling the Ukrainian leader that his country should focus on promoting the peace talks necessary for a ceasefire to take place as soon as possible. This would represent one more effort by China to position itself as the main player in the mediation to de-escalate the conflict.
In February, the Chinese Communist Party introduced a twelve-point plan with the aim of achieving peace between Russia and Ukraineafter more than a year of conflict between both nations.
In a reaction to the presentation of the document, Volodimir Zelensky expressed his willingness to consider certain points of the proposal to elaborate a final plan and achieve peace.
However, countries such as the United States have criticized the Chinese initiative for not including the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory as a necessity, and the European bloc stressed that the plan is ambiguous and does not propose a specific path for the ceasefire.
Russia’s reaction to the call
The Kremlin was quick to react to the communication between the two leaders. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova praised China’s attitude and “willingness to strive to establish a process of negotiations for peace.”
On the other hand, Zakharova criticized kyiv’s position in the talks and stressed that the government of Volodimir Zelenski has had an attitude of “rejection of any sensible initiative aimed at an agreement.”
Beijing has not condemned Russia for its military intervention in Ukraine, but neither has it expressed public support for the Kremlin’s actions.
In addition, Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia in March has caused Western bloc countries to doubt China’s neutrality in the conflict and question its role as a mediator between the two parties.
With Reuters and AP
