The European High Representative for Foreign Policy Josep Borrell is skeptical of China’s 12-point plan on the war in Ukraine. “I wouldn’t call it a peace plan,” he said today in New York, where the UN Security Council is discussing Russian aggression in Ukraine.
China presented the plan as a roadmap to peace in Ukraine, but according to Borrell it is only a “position”, in which Beijing mainly explains its own position. At the same time, the Chinese text does contain “interesting observations”, says the Spaniard. Borrell calls on the Chinese to discuss the plan with Ukraine as well. Earlier this week, top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi visited Russian President Vladimir Putin.
China as a mediator?
It seems that Beijing and Moscow are strengthening their ties. The United States has already warned of imminent Chinese arms transfers to Russia. According to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, China sided with Russia even before the start of the invasion. China’s credibility as a mediator in the conflict is not very strong, said Beijing on Friday in the Estonian capital Talinn, because Beijing has not condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
China is specifically calling for a ceasefire in Ukraine, followed by peace negotiations. Kiev, however, rejects the Chinese mediation attempt: Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky does not want to hear about peace talks as long as Russian troops have not withdrawn. There can also be no question of Russia annexing occupied territory in the context of a peace treaty for Kiev.
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