Xi Jinping called the prolongation of the conflict in Ukraine harmful for all parties

The causes of the crisis in Ukraine are complex, and any prolongation of it is detrimental to all parties, Chinese President Xi Jinping said at an informal meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Guangzhou.

“The causes of the Ukrainian crisis are complex, and any delay would be detrimental to all parties. An early ceasefire and hostilities are in the interests of all parties and the whole world. A political settlement is the only correct way out of the situation,” Xi was quoted by China Central Television (cit. by TASS)

At the same time, the PRC President stressed that Beijing welcomes the proposals of Paris on the political and diplomatic settlement of the conflict in Ukraine and is ready to support them.

The day before, April 6, Xi declared about the readiness of China, together with France, to call on the world community to resume peace talks on Ukraine as soon as possible. On the same day, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning declaredthat the US and NATO should be held responsible for the crisis in Ukraine. “The North Atlantic Alliance does not have the necessary status to reproach China or put pressure on it,” Mao said. She added that the PRC initially advocated facilitating peace talks on Ukraine and history will judge who “really took a fair and correct position.”

In August last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin declaredthat the US is trying to prolong the conflict in Ukraine. According to him, Washington is also interested in aggravating the situation in Asia, Africa and Latin America. At the end of January this year, Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev saidthat the United States and NATO have become parties to the conflict in Ukraine and intend to drag it out. Earlier in March, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov pointed outthat the United States and European countries are filled with a desire to prevent peace negotiations on Ukraine, unlike Russia and China.

Against the backdrop of the start of a special operation in Ukraine, Western countries imposed large-scale sanctions against Russia and began to provide military assistance to Kyiv. US President Joe Biden has previously stressed that the country will support Ukraine “for as long as it takes.” France is also one of the countries that supply Ukraine with weapons.

The Russian authorities have repeatedly criticized the supply of Western weapons to the Ukrainian army. In particular, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, warned that pumping Ukraine with weapons brings NATO closer to the dangerous line of a direct military clash with Russia. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that the supply of long-range weapons would only expand the geography of the special operation.