The Kremlin today accused the United States and Europe, unlike Russia and China, of blocking the start of peace talks on Ukraine.
“Washington and the European capitals, but especially Washington, are anxious not to allow peace negotiations under any pretext. They just don’t allow Kiev to think about it,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
The Kremlin was reacting to statements by the US government, which rejected the peace plan proposed by China on the grounds, among other things, that it would ratify “Russia’s illegal conquests” in Ukraine.
Peskov said the US and Western powers have “dropped their masks,” although the Kremlin “understands this situation as a reality to live with,” according to Spanish agency Europa Press.
“As for the reaction of the countries of the collective West, the fact that their reaction to all questions was hostile in nature is not new to anyone,” said Peskov, quoted by the French agency AFP.
China has proposed a peace plan to resolve the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which it released on February 24, the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of the neighboring country.
In the plan, China calls for a ceasefire, peace talks and an end to sanctions against Russia, but also defends respect for all countries’ sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also alludes to the “legitimate security concerns of all parties” in a reference to Russia.
The plan was opposed by Ukraine and its western allies as it would mean leaving Russian troops on sovereign Ukrainian territory.
Russia annexed five Ukrainian regions, starting with Crimea in 2014, followed by Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporiya in September last year.
The Chinese plan was discussed by Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Moscow on Monday and Tuesday.
Putin acknowledged that the plan contains provisions “in line with Russian approaches” that could form a basis for an eventual deal with Ukraine.
The Kremlin also said today that Putin and Xi have not discussed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s peace plan, which stipulates the withdrawal of Russian troops from all Ukrainian territory, including Crimea.
“No, the Ukrainian peace plan was not discussed. There was an exchange of views on the clauses of the Chinese peace plan,” said Peskov, quoted by the Spanish agency EFE.
According to Peskov, the “Zelensky plan” is an issue that needs to be discussed between China and Ukraine.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not provide details of a possible telephone conversation between Xi and Zelenskyy today.
“China has no selfish motives in the Ukrainian ‘question’ and has not poured fuel on the fire,” Chinese diplomatic spokesman Wang Wenbin said, according to EFE.
Wang was responding to statements by US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, who accused Beijing of “not being impartial” because Xi “has not visited Ukraine or spoken to Zelenskyy.”
China “did not cause the ‘crisis’ in Ukraine and is not part of it [do conflito] or provided weapons to both sides,” Wang said.
In recent days there has been speculation about the possibility of a phone call between Xi and Zelenskyy after the Chinese leader’s trip to Moscow.
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told his Ukrainian counterpart Dmitri Kuleba by phone last week that Beijing wants to play a “constructive role” in promoting peace talks.