As far as is known, for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Chinese President Xi Jinping has had a telephone conversation with President Volodymyr Zelenskyi. Why were the leaders talking to each other? Ukrainian President Zlenskyi has long wanted to hold a conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. From Kiev’s horizon, there is an awareness that peace will be difficult to achieve without China’s involvement. Not least because the great power China is basically the only country that has the capacity to influence the leaders in the Kremlin. The Chinese president said talks and negotiation are the only way out of the war, according to state media. The Ukrainian president wrote on Twitter that the conversation was long and meaningful. What position has China taken in relation to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? China has refrained from criticizing Russia. When the UN General Assembly held a vote in February calling on Russia to withdraw from Ukraine, China was among a total of 32 countries that abstained. The result of the vote was an overwhelming 141-7 in support of Russia’s withdrawal. Earlier this year, China presented a twelve-point plan to create peace in Ukraine. It has been criticized by both the US and Ukraine because the demand for Russia to withdraw immediately is missing. At the same time, Russian President Putin and Xi Jinping have forged very strong ties to each other. In recent years, they have met more than forty times and refer to each other as “dear friends”. In March, the Chinese leader visited his Russian friend in Moscow. But the relationship is not balanced. Russia is becoming more and more of a little brother to China. How has the outside world reacted to China’s attempts to achieve peace in Ukraine? Reactions have been mixed. The other day, French President Macron said he hopes China can influence Russia so that its representatives come to the negotiating table and come to their senses. Ukraine takes a cautiously positive view of China’s efforts, but points out that continuation will be impossible if the Chinese side with the Russians. The US sees China as a possible party for change, but not necessarily in a peaceful direction. The US is concerned that China could become a country that can supply Russia with weapons.
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