By He Yin, People’s Daily
The Ukraine crisis has shown no sign of stopping and generated more spillovers. The conflict could further escalate. The pressing priority is to cool down the situation and accumulate conditions for ceasefire.
China did not create the Ukraine crisis, nor is it a party to the crisis. It has been working vigorously to facilitate talks for peace all along. China’s objective and just position, and its constructive role have been widely recognized by the international community.
China’s position on the Ukraine crisis has been consistent, which is to promote peace talks. Since the full escalation of the Ukraine crisis, Chinese President Xi Jinping has had in-depth exchanges with world leaders including Russian and Ukrainian leaders. He has put forward four key principles, four things that the international community should do together and three observations, which have become China’s fundamental approach to the political settlement of the crisis.
China has released a paper stating its position on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, in which it proposed 12 important principles including respecting the sovereignty of all countries, abandoning the Cold War mentality, ceasing hostilities, and resuming peace talks.
China has delivered to Ukraine many shipments of humanitarian aids, and sent its special representative many times to mediate among the countries concerned. Instead of being an onlooker, China has always held an objective and just position, playing an important role for peace.
The world needs to make more objective, balanced, positive, and constructive voices on the Ukraine crisis, and find the most extensive common ground for restoring peace.
China and Brazil recently jointly issued the “Common Understandings Between China and Brazil on Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis.” The two sides had an in-depth exchange of views on pushing for the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and calling for the deescalation of the situation, and reached six common understandings.
They called on relevant parties to observe three principles for deescalating the situation, namely no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting, and no provocation by any party. They believe that dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solution to the Ukraine crisis. All parties should push for the deescalation of the situation, increase humanitarian assistance, oppose the use of nuclear weapons, oppose attacks on nuclear power plants, and protect the stability of global industrial and supply chains.
As of 12 June, 103 countries from five continents have responded positively to the “six common understandings” in different ways, of which 55 countries have confirmed their accession or are seriously studying the way of accession. Russia and Ukraine also affirmed most of the contents of these six common understandings.
This once again illustrates that these six common understandings meet the common expectations of the majority of countries. China believes that the more countries that support these six common understandings, the closer the day of the political settlement of the crisis will be, and the brighter the prospects for peace will become.
Dialogue and negotiation is the only viable way out for the Ukraine crisis. As the largest geopolitical conflict in Europe since World War II, the prolonged Ukraine crisis not only exacerbates the suffering of the people in both countries but also poses unpredictable risks and challenges to the region and the world, which are not in the interest of any party involved.
History has proven time and again that at the end of the day, conflicts can only be resolved through negotiation. All parties concerned should intensify diplomatic efforts for a ceasefire and put an end to the fighting in a responsible manner. Both sides of the crisis should be encouraged to engage in dialogue. The earlier the talks start, the sooner peace will arrive.
China has been the most firmly and actively committed to promoting peace talks on the Ukraine issue and will not give up as long as there is a glimmer of hope.
China encourages and supports all initiatives and efforts in the world that are conducive to easing the situation and achieving peace. China supports the holding in due course of an international peace conference that is recognized by both Russia and Ukraine and ensures the equal participation of all parties and fair discussions on all peace plans. China’s position on the peace conference is fair and just, driven by a genuine desire to promote the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.
The Ukraine crisis has complex historical and practical causes. To resolve the crisis, it is necessary to address both the symptoms and the root causes, and to plan for the present as well as for the long term.
Ukraine’s sovereignty and security should be upheld, and Russia’s legitimate security concerns should also be respected. Europe’s peace and stability should be defended. The same goes for other countries.
The security of a country should not be pursued at the expense of others. The security of a region should not be achieved by strengthening or expanding military blocs. The legitimate security interests and concerns of all countries must be taken seriously and addressed properly.
Only by abandoning the Cold War mentality, promoting equal dialogue and negotiation among all parties, and addressing their legitimate concerns properly, can a balanced, effective, and sustainable European security architecture be built, and long-lasting peace and stability in the region achieved.
China opposes certain countries using the Ukraine crisis to shift blame, smear third parties, incite a “new Cold War,” and force other countries to take sides. This approach not only fails to resolve the current crisis politically but also risks repeating the mistakes of camp-based confrontation.
No matter how complex the situation is, parties must not give up dialogue and negotiation. No matter how acute the conflict is, political settlement must be pursued. All relevant parties should prioritize peace and humanitarian crisis, direct their resources and endeavors towards diplomatic efforts aimed at stopping the fighting, and jointly promote a political solution to the Ukraine crisis at an early date.
China will keep upholding an objective and just position, build consensus for ending conflicts, and pave the way for peace talks, so as to contribute Chinese wisdom to the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.
