Foreign Minister Qin Gang said China was “deeply concerned” about the conflict in Ukraine. It is “intensifying” and “even getting out of hand,” he said in a speech on global security on Tuesday.
Beijing will “work with the international community to promote dialogue and consultation, address the concerns of all parties, and strive for common security.”
No criticism of Russia
However, the foreign minister continued to refrain from criticizing Russia for its war of aggression. Referring to the first anniversary of Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine, Qin said Beijing “will continue to promote peace talks”.
“At the same time, we call on affected countries to stop throwing oil on the fire as soon as possible.” Furthermore, “the blame must no longer be shifted to China.” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday that China might consider selling arms to Russia.
Referring to the island of Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory, Qin said countries should “stop creating riots by shouting ‘Today Ukraine, Tomorrow Taiwan'”.
He dismissed growing international concerns that China, like Russia in Ukraine, could launch a war to conquer Taiwan, which Beijing sees as part of the People’s Republic. The democratic island republic, on the other hand, has long considered itself independent and seeks international recognition as a nation. The US has committed to Taiwan’s defense capability.
China had announced a proposed “political solution” to the conflict in Ukraine for this week. At the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi declared that Beijing was against attacks on nuclear power plants and against the use of biochemical weapons and was ready to cooperate with “all parties”.
Initially, it was unclear whether a concrete plan would be forthcoming beyond the current concept paper on the Global Security Initiative (GSI) from head of state and party leader Xi Jinping. He only mentions the Ukraine crisis in one sentence with the support of “dialogue and negotiations”.
Skepticism about China’s peace efforts
China’s announcement was met with international skepticism because the communist leadership in Beijing is supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin and is taking a stand against the US and NATO.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning recently summed up the Chinese position: “The US is the one that triggered the crisis in Ukraine.” They are also “the biggest factor fueling the crisis”. However, the alliance with Russia is increasingly isolating China in the world. Diplomats in Beijing warned that the peace initiative could only be a kind of propaganda flight.
With his previously unveiled Global Security Initiative, Xi Jinping is vaguely pursuing a “new concept of security” in the world.
In addition to respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, it is about cooperative, sustainable and “indivisible” security, compliance with the UN Charter, consideration of the “legitimate security interests of all countries” and peaceful resolution of conflicts through dialogue and of the query.
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