China signs final declaration condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

The text contains caveats, but it is the first time that the Chinese have signed a document of this magnitude since the conflict broke out. The “no limits” friendship between China and Russia seems less and less solid. Beijing calls for restraint after the fall of a missile on Polish territory.

Beijing () – The leaders of the G20 member countries “strongly condemn Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and demand its complete and unconditional withdrawal from Ukrainian territory.” This is the key passage of the final declaration of the bali summit, which closed today two days of talks between the heads of State and Government of the 20 largest economies in the world. The statement was released after the bombing of several Ukrainian towns by Russia yesterday.

The most striking fact is that China (and Russia itself) also endorsed the document. Until now, the Chinese government has never endorsed an official position condemning the Russian attack on Ukraine. In these days of diplomatic meetings, the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, urged a peaceful resolution of the crisis, first of all the achievement of a ceasefire, and expressed his opposition to the use of nuclear weapons in the Ukrainian scenario. However, at no time did he directly criticize the Kremlin.

The joint statement has some caveats, without which China would not have given its approval. The text notes that “the majority of members strongly condemn the war in Ukraine and affirm that it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating the fragilities of the world economy.” In another passage it is noted that there are “other points of view and different assessments of the situation and the sanctions [contra Rusia]”.

However, according to various analysts, the approval of the text represents progress, since in the end the G20 – including Russia and China – recognizes Moscow as the aggressor and kyiv as the victim. The “without limits” friendship that Xi and Putin displayed on the eve of the Russian invasion seems less and less solid.

In a balancing act, Chinese diplomacy attempted to break Russia’s isolation on its visit to Bali. The Xinhua news agency reports that yesterday, in a face-to-face meeting with his Russian counterpart Lavrov, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said he appreciated Russia’s position on nuclear weapons, according to which “an atomic war cannot be won.” and it should never be fought.”

Although it does not say so explicitly, Beijing fears the risks of an expansion of the conflict. In today’s press conference, referring to the fall of an unidentified missile on Polish territory, an event that occurred yesterday, the spokeswoman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mao Ning, said that all parties should “remain calm , show restraint in the current circumstances, and avoid escalation.”