Coinciding with the first year of war in Ukraine, China has detailed its proposal for peace for the conflict, in which it calls for the withdrawal of sanctions and rebukes Russia for using the nuclear threat. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has published this Friday a document with twelve points where it reiterates the premises it has defended since the invasion of Russia, with whom this week the head of Chinese diplomacy staged the strengthening of their relationship on a visit to Moscow.
Beijing wants to prevent the crisis between Russia and Ukraine from "getting out of control" and advocates "dialogue and negotiations" as the only viable ways to reach "a ceasefire" and resolve the conflict. However, he did not offer details on the preconditions for the talks, although he assured that China "is willing to continue playing a constructive role." Kyiv has always called for the withdrawal of Russian troops from its territory as a prerequisite for a ceasefire, something that the document avoids.
While the Chinese peace proposal insists that "the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be defended effectively," it avoids explicitly calling on Moscow to withdraw from Ukraine, of which it now occupies a fifth. part of its territory, including the province of Crimea that it seized from it in 2014.
Instead, it emphasizes a recurring demand directed at the United States and the Atlantic Alliance when it calls for "abandoning the cold war mentality." "All parties must oppose the search for their own security at the expense of the security of others, avoid confrontation between blocks," he claims, referring to one of the arguments used by Russian President Vladimir Putin to justify the invasion. of its neighboring country, because it was approaching the orbit of NATO.
The document ensures that "there are no winners in a war" and demands that all parties "avoid fanning the flames" so that the situation does not "get out of control." In an implicit reprimand to Russia, the Ministry expresses its opposition to the "use or threat of use of nuclear weapons" and warns that "nuclear war should not and cannot be waged." Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed his rejection of a nuclear war in Europe in November to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Putin, on the other hand, often employs the fear of the atomic bomb whenever he mentions the red lines of Western support for Ukraine.
Since the start of the war, Beijing has claimed a neutral stance in the war, but has also expressed "unlimited friendship" with Russia and has refused to refer to Russian aggression as an invasion. A day after China's top diplomat Wang Yi deepened relations with Putin, China yesterday refrained from passing a non-binding UN General Assembly resolution calling on the Kremlin to end hostilities in Ukraine and withdraw his forces. The Asian giant is one of the 16 countries that have always voted against or abstained on almost all of the five previous resolutions on Ukraine.
Likewise, Beijing demands in its document the cessation of "unilateral sanctions", that is, those not supported by the UN Security Council, where Russia has the power of veto and which Beijing has rejected since the beginning of the conflict, for " not solve problems, as well as create new ones".
Analysts consulted believe that there is fear in the West that the Chinese proposal will gain traction in the global South, which has largely resisted joining the sanctions. During their meeting in Munich last week, Western leaders stressed the need to appeal to these countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, which are paying the price for a war they don't feel is right with them.
The Chinese peace plan also calls for the protection of civilians and prisoners of war. On the first point, Russian forces have been accused by Ukraine, NATO and international agencies of indiscriminately attacking civilians since the invasion began in February 2022, while Moscow maintains that it is attacking military targets with high precision. As for the second, both sides have made several prisoner exchanges.
The Foreign Ministry also indicates that it is necessary to "resolve the humanitarian crisis", "guarantee cereal exports" and protect "the stability of industrial and supply chains". Finally, China communicates its willingness to "provide help" in a "reconstruction after the war."
Although the Ukrainian president, Volodímir Zelenski, celebrated yesterday that Beijing was more involved in the conflict before the content of its peace plan was known, it seems unlikely that the proposal will find support in Kyiv, Washington or European capitals.
From the United States, his National Security adviser, Jake Sullivan, rejected the Chinese proposal that, in his opinion, should end after the first point, in which he demands respect for the sovereignty of all countries. "This war could end tomorrow if Russia would stop attacking Ukraine and withdraw forces from it," he told CNN. For his part, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg did not give China "much credibility" in light of its failure to condemn Putin's war.
The European Union ambassador to China, Jorge Toledo, considered that the Beijing plan is a political statement rather than a peace proposal and pointed to Brussels' concern that it does not mention an aggressor, he told a briefing in Beijing. and collects Reuters.
For her part, Ukraine's envoy Zhanna Leshchynska, present at the same session, assured that Ukraine hoped that China would also urge Russia to stop the war and withdraw its troops. Asked to what extent she believed China had maintained neutrality in the conflict, Leshchynska commented that if Beijing wants to be neutral "it must talk to both sides. Now we see that China talks mainly to Russia, but not to Ukraine," she said.
