From Mahnoor
Makhdoom
BEIJING: China on Wednesday said President Xi Jinping’s just-concluded visit to Russia was a “journey of friendship, cooperation and peace,” and again criticized Washington for providing military support to Ukraine.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin reiterated that China remains neutral in the conflict and said it had “no selfish motives on the Ukraine issue, has not stood idly by or taken the opportunity to profit itself.”
“What China has done boils down to one word, that is, to promote peace talks,” Wang said at a daily briefing.
Wang also accused the U.S. of lacking impartiality and of “fanning the flames” of the conflict by providing defensive weapons to Ukraine to Washington’s own benefit.
“President Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia is a journey of friendship, cooperation and peace, which has aroused positive responses in the international community,” Wang said.
China would “continue to play a constructive role in promoting a political settlement of the Ukrainian issue,” Wang said, an apparent reference to a 12-point peace proposal put forward by Beijing that calls for a cease-fire and negotiations.
In other comments on Ukraine, Wang said Russia and China agreed that the U.N. Charter must be observed and international law be respected. It said they opposed unilateral sanctions imposed by the U.S. and others to economically punish Putin and his financial backers.
Wang said nothing about the arrest warrant issued for Putin by the International Criminal Court on charges of alleged involvement in abductions of thousands of children from Ukraine.
In a joint statement signed in Moscow, Russia and China emphasized the need to “respect legitimate security concerns of all countries” to settle the conflict, echoing Moscow’s argument that it sent in troops to prevent the U.S. and its NATO allies from turning the country into an anti-Russian bulwark.
“The two sides pointed out that the solution to the Ukraine crisis must respect the legitimate security concerns of all countries and prevent the formation of bloc confrontation and fanning flames,” Wang said Wednesday in Beijing.
“The two sides stressed that responsible dialogue is the best way to resolve the issue steadily,” Wang said. “To this end, the international community should support relevant constructive efforts, and the two sides call for the cessation of all actions that could lead to a tense situation and prolonged war, so as to avoid further deterioration or even loss of control of the crisis,” he said.
