The plan presented by China to end the war in Ukraine receives strong criticism from researchers.
In its 12-point plan, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that the integrity of all countries must be respected, violence must be stopped, unilateral sanctions must be removed, and peace negotiations must begin immediately.
– It is not exactly a diplomatic skill to demand that the war be ended by negotiation. Even ChatGPT (artificial intelligence) could have made a better proposal, downloads the leading researcher of the Foreign Policy Institute Charly Salonius-Pasternak In an interview with .
In his opinion, the agreement does not take Ukraine’s interests into account at all and is in many ways sympathetic to Russia’s interests.
– China’s proposal requires respect for territorial integrity, but does not require Russia to withdraw from the Ukrainian territories it illegally annexed, Salonius-Pasternak continues.
China has not made such a demand before, nor has it condemned Russia’s attack on Ukraine. In addition, China regularly abstains from all UN votes related to the war in Ukraine.
Professor of International Politics at the University of Tampere Juha Vuoren according to me, it’s not really even a peace proposal.
– Many of these are principles that China has been promoting in its foreign policy for decades, he says in an interview with .
According to Vuori, a genuine peace plan should contain much more concrete information about what is required from both sides.
According to Vuori, the war in Ukraine is embarrassing for China. The cornerstone of China’s foreign policy has long been the sanctity of state sovereignty and integrity.
China does not want other countries to interfere in its internal disputes, as it sees the situations in Taiwan and Tibet, for example.
– China is forced to recognize Ukraine’s territorial integrity, and for this reason Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the annexation of Ukrainian territories is a sensitive issue for China, Vuori says.
On the other hand, Russia is a close partner for China, and China demands that its security policy interests be taken into account in Europe.
– In a way, China sees the fact that Russia’s interests have not been taken into account as the reason for the violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, he continues.
In the background, China’s desire to become active in great power politics
According to Salonius-Pasternak, China does not seem to genuinely want to resolve the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. China’s motive is to seek a more active role in great power politics by presenting a constructive and stability-seeking actor.
– It is above all about the Chinese president Xi Jinping for saving face. China and Russia have established a close partnership, and it is not good for Xi’s prestige that Russia completely loses face and loses the war, he estimates.
This would make Xi appear in his home country as a strategically inept leader who chose the wrong partner for his country.
– And of course the background is also that China wants to show itself as a great power with global ambitions, Salonius-Pasternak adds.
Juha Vuori is also of the opinion that it is precisely China’s desire to raise its profile as a great power.
– For a long time, China has been trying to create an image of itself as a responsible great power, a peace-loving and cooperation-based security-based state, he says.
The proposed agreement benefits China and Russia more than Ukraine
China says in the agreement that it opposes “unilateral sanctions that do not have the approval of the UN Security Council”.
Russia is a member of the UN Security Council with the right to veto, so this would practically mean that there would be no sanctions against Russia at all, Vuori estimates.
– In this and many other points, China clearly has its own cow in the ditch instead of genuinely trying to end the conflict in Ukraine.
In addition, between the lines, China criticizes the United States and NATO for expanding close to Russia.
“The security of one country should not be promoted at the expense of the security of other countries. The security of the region should not be guaranteed by strengthening or expanding military alliances. The countries’ legitimate security interests and concerns must be taken seriously and addressed,” written in the contract proposal. (you switch to another service)
– This is straight Kremlin propaganda, which comes from Russia’s front line thinking, and not from the fact that many of its neighboring countries have themselves wanted to become members of the European Union and NATO, Salonius-Pasternak says.
According to him, China’s proposal clearly benefits Russia and China itself more than Ukraine.
China’s proposal contains, among other things, a point that demands the stability of the production chains of the global economy and that the war in Ukraine does not disrupt the functioning of the global economy.
– This is also directly internal politics. A prerequisite for China’s economic growth is globalization and the functioning of the world economy. This is exactly what has kept the Communist Party in power, Salonius-Pasternak estimates.
China’s possible armed support for Russia overshadows the peace proposal
China presents itself as a neutral peacemaker while having a historically close partnership with Russia.
NATO and the United States have even warned that China is preparing to provide armed support to Russia.
According to Salonius-Pasternak, China might use the peace proposal as a tool to justify military aid.
– China could say that we first tried to achieve peace through diplomatic means, but the Western countries and Ukraine blocked it, he estimated.
In this way, China could say that the conflict cannot be resolved other than by supplying arms to Russia.
Vuori, on the other hand, does not believe that China will start supporting Russia with lethal armed aid.
– This would be quite stupid from China and there is no proof of this either. This is also a tool of rhetorical warfare for the West, he estimates.
According to Vuori, whenever Western countries present these accusations, it forces China to deny them publicly and spectacularly, which in turn drives a wedge into the close partnership between Russia and China.
– In addition, whenever the subject is brought up in the West, the market reacts negatively. That, in turn, scares China, he continues.
More on the topic:
Charly Salonius-Pasternak comments on China’s proposal on the radio’s 4 pm news.
Biden: I warned the Chinese president about financial sanctions for supporting Russia
China presented a 12-point proposal to end the war in Ukraine
The UN General Assembly demands that Russia withdraw from Ukraine
China and Russia praised their cooperation – relations are being deepened, but the details were kept quiet