In comments published on Tuesday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba suggested Communist China is taking sides in Russia’s invasion of the country and is “in no hurry” to support its ally Russia as it waits to see which side wins.
Kuleba’s comments came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made an extraordinary rebuke of China this weekend, calling it a “shame” that China is becoming a “tool” of Russia.
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China is one of Russia’s closest allies on the international stage, a founding member of the anti-American BRICS coalition, with which it often works together to block human rights proposals at the UN Security Council. However, Beijing has not severed ties with Ukraine or enthusiastically supported Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, enjoying its status as Ukraine’s largest trading partner and claiming to only be on the side of peace. However, Chinese dictator Xi Jinping has ignored several offers from President Zelensky to mediate in Ukraine’s favor, including calling on “Chinese companies” to help rebuild Ukraine after the war.
Kuleba made the remarks on Monday at a promotional event for a book about Ukraine’s future, state media reported. Ukrinform“China is in no rush to pick sides in a war,” the foreign minister said. “The reason is simple: it is very important for China to see how the war between Russia and Ukraine ends.”
“If this war ends with a victory for Ukraine, it will limit China’s further actions. But if this war does not end with a victory for Russia, but with Russia imposing its strategic initiative – if Russia advances bit by bit over the years and fights back bit by bit despite all the help we’ve received – then that will free China’s hand,” he explained.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a press conference following the 21st Shangri-La Dialogue summit at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore, June 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Vincent Tian)
“In China, there is now a separate official government study of what can be done to defend the country against its much larger neighbors and nuclear powers, and what can its partners do to protect it,” Kuleba continued. “And it all boils down to a conclusion: right now, they have a position that, simply put, is: ‘We support peace, we support all good against all evil.’ But there is a much broader logic to that position that will ultimately determine the fate of the world.”
Kuleba did not elaborate on the “study” he was conducting on how well Beijing could defend itself “against its much larger neighbor.” But since Putin announced the “special operation” in Ukraine, international observers have Discussed A Russian victory in Ukraine could open the door for China to invade neighboring Taiwan, a free and sovereign nation that the Chinese Communist Party falsely claims as its own.
Ukrainian officials have been vocal in supporting China’s false claims to Taiwan in order to rally support against Russia.
Kuleba’s comments about China came after Zelenskiy attended Sunday’s Shangri-La Dialogue, a defense summit in Singapore this weekend. Zelenskiy said Xi Jinping was backing Russia in a planned “Peace SummitChinese officials confirmed last week that they would not take part in the summit because Russia was not attending.
“It is a shame that a big, independent and powerful country like China has become Putin’s pawn,” Zelensky said. Said In Singapore.
President of Ukraine continue Attended the Shangri-La Dialogue visit Zelenskyy visited the Philippines, the country currently embroiled in a territorial dispute with China. The visit was the first by a Ukrainian president to the country. In Manila, he will attend a peace summit in Switzerland, for which Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude.
I arrived in the Philippines and met with the President. Bonbon Marcos This is the first time in the history of relations between the two countries.
I appreciate the Philippines’ support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and its clear stance against Russian aggression. pic.twitter.com/1MRxTYYfWi
— Volodymyr Zelensky (@ZelenskyyUa) June 3, 2024
China responded to Zelenskiy’s comments on Monday, insisting it was simply trying to remain neutral in the war.
“China has repeatedly stressed that an international peace conference needs to meet three key elements,” said foreign ministry spokesman Mao Ning. Said “That means recognition from both Russia and Ukraine, equal participation of all parties, and a fair discussion of all peace plans,” the journalists said.
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“As far as China is concerned, it seems that the conference has not yet met these three elements, and that is precisely why China cannot participate in the conference. I would like to emphasize that China’s position on the peace conference is fair and impartial,” she asserted.
Mao finally warned, “China sincerely hopes that the Peace Conference will not become a forum for creating bloc conflict. Not attending the Conference does not mean that we do not support peace.”
The change in Ukrainian public attitudes toward China follows years of attempts to sway Chinese support and, in February, Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun abruptly declared those efforts to have failed. On the second anniversary of the Russian “special operation,” Dong issued a statement along with Russian officials saying, “Despite the continued pressure from the U.S. and EU on China’s side, China supports you on the Ukraine issue.” This clear statement of support marked a departure from previous statements by the Chinese regime.
Yet Ukraine maintains diplomatic and economic ties with China, its largest trading partner, and Ukraine is a member of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global infrastructure debt-trap scheme that preys on poor countries with predatory loans.
