Beijing: China has opted out of attending a Ukraine peace conference scheduled in Switzerland next month, citing failure to meet its criteria, including the involvement of both Russia and Ukraine, the Chinese Foreign Ministry affirmed on Friday, corroborating an exclusive Reuters report.
Switzerland aims for a diverse representation from various regions worldwide at the mid-June summit, aspiring to pave the way for a peace initiative in Ukraine. Moscow, uninvited, dismisses the talks as futile without its involvement.
“The arrangements for the meeting still fall far short of China’s requests and the general expectations of the international community, making it difficult for China to participate,” stated Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning during a routine briefing. “China has always insisted that an international peace conference should be endorsed by both Russia and Ukraine, with the equal participation of all parties, and that all peace proposals should be discussed in a fair and equal manner. Otherwise, it will be difficult for it to play a substantive role in restoring peace.”
Earlier, China informed some diplomats that it declined the invitation due to unmet conditions, including recognition by both Russia and Ukraine, equal participation by all parties, and fair discussion of all proposals.
“We are very sorry that the Chinese side does not use the opportunity to present its position on the platform of the Summit in Switzerland,” regretted a spokesperson for the Ukrainian embassy in Beijing in a statement to Reuters.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested that China could organize a peace conference involving Russia and Ukraine. During his recent visit to China, Russian President Vladimir Putin supported China’s plan for a peaceful resolution, emphasizing Beijing’s comprehensive understanding of the crisis.
While China and Russia proclaimed an extensive partnership before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Beijing has refrained from providing direct military aid. However, it proposed a 12-point plan over a year ago to outline general principles for ending the conflict.
Switzerland sought to persuade more countries from the Global South, including China, to attend the conference, which aims to address the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
