Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he wants to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping after Beijing published a proposal to end the war in Ukraine.
On the first anniversary of the war, China attempted to reiterate its neutrality, urging all parties to “remain rational and exercise restraint.”
Beijing’s Foreign Ministry released a 12-point proposal yesterday calling for an end to unilateral sanctions that have not been approved by the UN Security Council, where Russia could veto them.
Zelensky has said he wants to meet his Chinese counterpart to discuss his peace plan that calls for a ceasefire and a gradual de-escalation.
He said: “China started talking about Ukraine and that’s not bad. It seems to me that there is respect for our territorial integrity, security issues.
He added that he hoped to have face-to-face talks with the Chinese leader, but did not say when. “I plan to meet with Xi Jinping and I believe that this will be beneficial for our countries and for security in the world,” he said.
Although Zelensky has welcomed Beijing’s input, he instead pointed to his own peace plan, which will be voted on by the United Nations General Assembly.
He said: “It seems to me that our ‘peace formula’ has already been supported by a large number of states and we hope that they will support it when there is a UN meeting and a vote on the corresponding resolution.”
Despite China’s calls for “peace and dialogue,” Beijing abstained when the UN passed a resolution on Thursday calling on Russia to halt hostilities in Ukraine and withdraw its armed forces.
Although Zelensky plans to meet his Chinese counterpart, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has warned that Beijing is considering supplying Russia with weapons.
“To date, we have seen Chinese companies provide non-lethal support to Russia for use in Ukraine. The concern we have now is based on the information we have that they are considering providing lethal support,” he said.
Joe Biden also questioned China’s peace plan, telling ABC News: “I haven’t seen anything in the plan that indicates there’s anything that would be beneficial to anyone other than Russia.”
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