In Beijing, the Belarusian ruler Lukashenko is negotiating the future of Ukraine with China’s head of state Xi. Lukashenko praises the peace plan presented by Beijing as “unorthodox” and “reasonable”. The reason for the charm offensive may also be his striving for economic-military cooperation.
At a meeting with Chinese head of state Xi Jinping in Beijing, Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko made clear his unreserved support for the Chinese position paper on the Ukraine war and vowed to good relations between Belarus and China. Belarus “fully supports the initiative on international security that you have put forward,” Lukashenko told Xi in Beijing.
The meeting of the two heads of state as part of Lukashenko’s three-day state visit to China at the invitation of Xi is taking place at a “difficult time that calls for new, unorthodox approaches and sensible political decisions,” Lukashenko said. “They should aim first and foremost to prevent a slide into a global confrontation that will see no winners,” he said.
The West had previously criticized China’s recently presented twelve-point plan, which among other things proposes a dialogue between the two countries to end the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. China has not yet condemned Russia’s war of aggression, but has also rejected allegations of wanting to supply weapons to Russia.
Shortly before his meeting with Xi, Lukashenko had praised the good relations with China via the website of his presidential office. “There are no taboo topics for cooperation,” said Lukashenko. “We cooperate in all areas.” The statement goes on to say: “We are doing everything in the interests of our Belarusian and Chinese people. That will continue to be the case.”
Before leaving, Lukashenko stressed that he was looking forward to his “old friend” Xi. Before Lukashenko’s visit, China had once again praised its “weatherproof and comprehensive” partnership with the former Soviet Republic of Belarus.
In a video at the meeting with Lukashenko, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang can be heard saying that Xi will meet Lukashenko in the afternoon “to further plan the development of bilateral relations.” “We are confident that Belarus-China relations will continue to move forward, building on the friendship between the two countries,” Li said.
Lukashenko is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and has backed Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Belarus is financially and politically heavily dependent on its neighbor Russia.
