The most difficult challenge facing Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Russia on Monday is to work to end the conflict in Ukraine, according to a report published by the Russian newspaper "Vzglyad", highlighting that China has a lot to offer in this file.
Cooperation between the two countries in the economic field largely exists, while politically much will be determined by direct personal dialogue between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart, although Western attempts to thwart relations between Beijing and Moscow continue.
He argued that the Chinese president never succumbs to pressure from adversaries, and the more pressure on him, the more he shows signs that this pressure has not worked, as happened with the appointment of General Li Shangfu as China's new defense minister, who is subject to US sanctions.
Ukrainian profile
The issue of Ukraine will inevitably be raised during the discussions of the two leaders, as it is clear that China is preparing to increase its role in the conflict, while the United States has spoken that Beijing will start sending military supplies to Moscow, and warned against this.
It is not about delivering weapons, as the Americans believe, but about China's desire to become a mediator in peacemaking, especially since it achieved important success in this area, when the last agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia was made, an agreement that was impossible until recently.
Negotiations to end Ukraine's war, no matter how difficult or protracted, must begin at least first.
New Opportunity
The Russian newspaper report stressed that the Chinese president can offer a different alternative, different guarantees, and thus his initiative is a new opportunity to achieve peace, provided that Kiev recognizes a "fait accompli", especially Russia's expansion in several areas of Ukraine.
President Xi Jinping has some weapons of pressure on the Ukrainian side, foremost of which is the prospect of arms supplies to the Russian Federation.
He said that some Chinese officials have recently begun to wonder why the West can arm Taiwan, but China cannot supply Russia with weapons. And why doesn't Beijing make military cooperation with Moscow directly linked to the Taiwan issue?
If China does, it would be bad news for Ukraine, because if Washington had to choose between supporting Kiev and Taipei, the Americans would definitely choose Taipei, because it is a much older and more important story for them.
But if all goes "well," and consultations between Kiev and Moscow begin "on a realistic basis," it will be a severe blow to the West and its policies, giving China a new status as a "global peacemaker."