The Chinese diplomatic offensive in the war in Ukraine of its Russian ally
Chinese President Xi Jinping, during his New Year's speech in Beijing, December 31, 2022. AP - Ju Peng
Text by: RFI Follow
4 mins
China waited until the first anniversary of the conflict in Ukraine to publish a twelve-point plan on the "political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis", breaking with its hitherto very neutral role in the conflict.
But for several weeks, Chinese propaganda has been ramping up behind the diplomatic scenes, with the aim of positioning Beijing as a major player in the Ukrainian conflict, particularly against the United States.
Advertisement
Read more
Wang Yi, China's top foreign policy official, has crisscrossed Europe in recent days, from Munich to Budapest to Moscow, where he reaffirmed that the Sino-Russian friendship is "solid as a rock
"
.
The purpose of this tour: to present and defend Beijing's vision on the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine.
A detailed vision in a
twelve-point plan
.
Nothing new on the horizon, but this document positions China as an actor in the face of American power, explains political scientist Valérie Niquet, of the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS).
"
These twelve points are not revolutionary when you know the Chinese position,"
she explains.
They are always on the same theme, that is to say non-interference and the role of the UN aimed at challenging Western or American domination in terms of international standards, and the legitimacy of omnipotence. the United States.
This plan also aims to reintroduce a new player, China, and to give it importance, especially in the face of American power.
»
“Gradual de-escalation”
Concretely, the first point of the Chinese plan lays down a fundamental principle, namely respect for "
the sovereignty of all countries
", and the second point is a call to reject "
the mentality of the cold war
", with a line of sight, implicitly, NATO.
On the third point only, Chinese diplomacy comes explicitly to the ongoing conflict, calling on all parties to encourage Russians and Ukrainians to “
resume direct dialogue as quickly as possible
”, with the objective of “
gradual de-escalation
” then “
a ceasefire” .
full fire
”.
“
I intend to meet Xi Jinping,
reacted Volodymyr Zelensky.
This will be important for global security.
China respects territorial integrity and must do everything to ensure that Russia leaves the territory of Ukraine
," he said at a press conference on February 24, adding again: "
I want to believe that China will be on the side of a just world, that is, on our side.
»
The issue of weapons
In recent days, the rivalry between Beijing and Washington has gained altitude, with the affair of Chinese balloons in the American sky.
And she should move to Kazakhstan, Moscow's historical ally which refused to support the Russian invasion;
the Central Asian country has announced support for the plan proposed by China, a few days before a visit by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Another sign of the Chinese offensive: Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, Moscow's main ally, will himself go on an official visit to Beijing, from Tuesday February 28 to Thursday March 2 for an official visit, reports the Chinese ministry. Foreign Affairs.
And this, at the invitation of President Xi Jinping.
There remains the question of weapons.
For a week, Antony Blinken has been insisting that China would consider supplying arms to Russia, and the interested party denies it.
On Friday, the German magazine
Der Spiegel
wrote
that Beijing could deliver, from April, a hundred drones to Moscow.
A case to follow.
“Appear Acceptable”
Until now, China had always shone by its neutrality, held by its alliance with its Russian neighbor.
But for several weeks now, the communist regime has therefore shown incessant diplomatic activity.
Where China achieves a sort of semi-victory, a small victory on the international scene, is that its plan is spoken of as something that exists.
The second thing is that President Zelensky did not respond in a hostile way at all.
So the big victory, or more precisely the small victory of China, is in a way to appear acceptable for Ukraine, which everyone qualifies as a model of democracy that must be supported because of values.
There, we see that President Zelensky does not accept Xi Jinping's plan without saying anything, but finally, whatever his values, he is not at all hostile to China's entry into the game.
Valérie Niquet, Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS)
Zhifan Liu
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
China
Ukraine