A year of war in Ukraine. From Moscow, the invader Putin demonizes the West and suspends a nuclear disarmament treaty. From kyiv, President Zelensky warns China that siding with Russia would provoke World War III. From New York, the UN General Assembly approved by a large majority a resolution to demand that the Kremlin immediately withdraw its troops from Ukraine. From Beijing, Xi Jinping, who has been trying to appear neutral for a year, has a peace proposal.
The Chinese government on Friday released a 12-point document called “China’s Position on a Political Solution to the Ukraine Crisis.” It is a text where, more than a solid proposal to resolve the conflict, it vaguely collects in less than 1,000 words all the phrases that the Chinese leaders have been releasing since the beginning of an invasion that they continue to call “crisis”. Starting with their immovable ambiguous position: respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and call for a ceasefire while considering Russia’s security concerns about NATO expansion into Eastern Europe as legitimate.
In Beijing they do not come out of that contradiction: they send more than three million dollars in humanitarian aid to Ukraine and say they defend the sovereignty of all countries while buying the Kremlin’s narrative and criticizing international sanctions against Russia. “The sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be effectively guaranteed,” underlines the first point of the letter. “Unilateral sanctions and extreme pressure will not only not solve problems, but will create new ones. The relevant countries must stop abusing unilateral sanctions and play a role in cooling the crisis,” he continues.
The most interesting note that can be taken from the document is a direct warning to Vladimir Putin in the seventh and eighth sections about the dangers of a nuclear war breaking out. “We oppose armed attacks against nuclear facilities such as nuclear power plants. We call on all parties to respect nuclear safety conventions and other international laws.” A few days ago, during his state of the nation address, Putin announced the suspension of Russian participation in the latest nuclear arms control treaty (New START) signed with the United States.
“Nuclear weapons cannot be used and nuclear war cannot be waged. The use or threat of nuclear weapons, as well as the development of biological and chemical weapons by any country under any circumstances, must be opposed.” This is the first message that Beijing has left for Putin. The second focuses on the situation of Ukrainian civilians. “International humanitarian law must be strictly adhered to and refrain from attacking civilians and civilian facilities. The safety of civilians must be effectively protected and humanitarian evacuation corridors must be established in war zones.”
From the second world power they had been announcing all week that they would make their proposal to end the conflict public. The expectation was high and Xi Jinping was expected to give a speech. In Europe, countries such as France or Germany wondered if Xi would finally rise up to play a role of mediator that had been so demanded of him due to his strong ties with Putin and the increasing economic dependence that an isolated Russia has on the Asian giant.
Even Zelenski, during the press conference on Thursday that he shared with Pedro Sánchez, was very interested in the plan that Beijing had promoted. The Ukrainian leader said he would like to meet with Xi to learn first-hand about his proposal. But a meeting between the two does not seem to be in Beijing’s short-term plans for now. Xi has spoken to all the major players around the war except Zelensky. With Putin he has done it four times since February 2022. And the Chinese president is expected to visit Moscow this year.
“All parties should maintain rationality and restraint, not add fuel to the fire, not escalate conflicts, and prevent the Ukrainian crisis from further escalating or even getting out of control,” continues the letter submitted Friday by Beijing. “Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable way out to resolve the crisis. The international community must help all parties to the conflict to open the door to a political solution to the crisis as soon as possible and provide a platform for the resumption of negotiations. China is willing to continue to play a constructive role in this regard.”
Beijing also demands that the export of grains be guaranteed and that the stability of the industrial and supply chains be ensured. It also calls on the international community to take measures to intensify humanitarian aid to Ukraine and to help “post-war reconstruction in conflict zones.” China, he says, is ready to provide any assistance that is required.
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