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Russia’s war against Ukraine poses a direct threat to regional and global security, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Poland said. During a meeting with the Special Representative of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui, Deputy Foreign Minister of Poland Teofil Bartoszewski called on Beijing not to provide any political, economic and military support to the aggressor country. The visit to Warsaw became part of the diplomatic tour of the Chinese Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs. He has already visited Moscow and Brussels. Visited Kyiv, reports FREEDOM.
The functioning of the “grain corridor”, the exchange of prisoners of war and the return of deported Ukrainian children. These topics were discussed by representatives of the Ukrainian and Chinese delegations at a briefing at the Office of the President of Ukraine (OPU). China’s Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs was shown fragments of a North Korean missile and other weapons used by Russia to attack Ukraine. One of the central topics was nuclear safety.
“Deputy Minister of Energy of Ukraine Svetlana Grinchuk informed the Chinese delegation in detail about the situation with nuclear and radiation safety in war conditions, in particular, about the situation at the Zaporozhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) seized by the invaders. She particularly focused on the threats posed by the occupation of nuclear power plants, the lack of qualified personnel and the need to replace fuel in the near future. The Deputy Minister of Energy stated: Russia does not have certified specialists to perform this work,” from a message on the website of the Office of the President of Ukraine.
At the meeting they discussed the prospects for implementing the Ukrainian peace formula. Ukraine invited the head of China to the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland. True, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi believes that it is necessary to convene an international peace conference, which will be recognized not only by Kyiv, but also by Moscow. In 2023, Xi Jinping proposed his own peace plan for resolving the “Ukrainian crisis.” In China, this is what they call Russia’s war against Ukraine. But the Chinese plan does not meet Ukrainian interests, experts say.
“The withdrawal of all Russian troops from all occupied territories is a point that clearly does not suit the Russian side, and China calls for some kind of compromise solution to be found that will satisfy both sides – Russian and Ukrainian. Therefore, for China, it is not fundamentally important what specific compromises these will be, as long as in the end they come to at least some kind of peaceful solution in order to stop the hot phase of the war,” explained Alina Gritsenko, chief consultant of the National Institute for Strategic Studies.
Li Hui’s visit to Kyiv took place as part of a diplomatic tour that started on March 2. The special representative of the People’s Republic of China has already visited Moscow, Brussels and Warsaw. This is already the second tour of the PRC Special Representative for Eurasian Issues. According to analysts, Beijing is seeking to strengthen its position in the international arena. Especially in Europe.
“Europe is the point, the place where competition will take place in the near future between China and the United States, which will offer different projects, opportunities and initiatives related to ending the war. Therefore, it is very important for China to take part in negotiations around a ceasefire in Ukraine, and in a dialogue to seek some kind of reconciliation between the warring parties,” stated Dmitry Efremov, an expert at the Ukrainian Association of Sinologists.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry once again repeated that Beijing adheres to an impartial position. Such rhetoric is another attempt by Beijing to position itself as an independent mediator in the proposed negotiation process, according to analysts at the Institute for the Study of War. And Russia will likely continue to use China’s similar stance to extract Western concessions.
Read also: Time of peace in EU is over, we live in pre-war times, – Tusk
