• Ukraine’s finance minister Serhiy Marchenko believes Kyiv should leverage its bilateral relationship with China to end the war in his country.
• Chinese President Xi Jinping had offered his version of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
• In recent months, Beijing has ramped up its efforts to gain prominence in global politics.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Ukraine’s Finance Minister, Serhiy Marchenko, believes that Kyiv should leverage its relations with Beijing to make Russia withdraw its forces from the country and put an end to the war. This statement comes following a telephone conversation between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Chinese Peace Plan
Chinese President Xi Jinping had previously offered his own version of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin approved of China’s intervention and expressed willingness to implement it if Ukraine reciprocates. In recent months, China has increased its involvement in international affairs by successfully mediating between long-time enemies Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Conversation Between Leaders
On April 26th 2023, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for over one hour about furthering their countries’ bilateral relationship so as to prevent full support from China towards Russia on the conflict front.
Increasing Influence
China is working towards gaining more prominence in global politics as the West fails to bring an end to the war in Ukraine despite numerous attempts at doing so. With increasing success in mediating conflicts around the world, Chinese President Xi has vowed to increase his country’s role and influence on international affairs even further going forward.
Ukraine Leveraging Relationships
With this telephone conversation taking place between leaders of both countries, Marchenko believes that Kyiv should use its relationships with Beijing to come closer towards solving this conflict between itself and Russia once and for all.