Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi assured his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba that China “does not sell lethal weapons” to Russia, Beijing said on Sunday evening. Despite the conflict, China remains a very important trade and diplomatic partner of Russia, with both countries sharing the common ambition of counterbalancing Western influence on the international stage.
China ‘continues to push for peace talks’
In addition to this economic support, the Asian giant has sometimes been suspected, particularly on the American side, of supplying the Russian army engaged in Ukraine with material, equipment, and even weapons. Accusations still firmly denied by Beijing. China “continues to push for peace talks and does not add fuel to the fire,” Wang Yi told Dmytro Kuleba during a meeting on Saturday in Munich (Germany) on the sidelines of the Security Conference.
Beijing “does not take advantage (of the situation) to reap profits and does not sell lethal weapons to conflict zones or parties to the conflict”, he stressed, according to a press release published Sunday evening by Chinese diplomacy . China has been criticized by the West on the Ukrainian issue. Because if she calls for respect for the territorial integrity of all countries – including Ukraine – she has never publicly condemned Russia.
Beijing is also seeking to position itself as a neutral party in the war. “No matter how the international situation develops, China hopes that China-Ukraine relations will develop normally and continue to benefit the two peoples,” Wang Yi told his interlocutor on Saturday. “We will continue to play a constructive role to end the war and restore peace as soon as possible. Even if there is only a glimmer of hope for peace, China will not give up its efforts.” , he stressed.
Beijing regularly calls for a political settlement of the conflict. His envoy for the Ukrainian question, the diplomat Li Hui, pointed out last year the harmful role he believes of Western military aid to Ukraine. “If we really want to stop the war, save lives and achieve peace, we should not send weapons to the battlefield,” he denounced.