Ukraine apparently doesn’t want to
Putin praises China’s peace proposals
October 16, 2023, 1:41 p.m
Before his visit to China, Kremlin leader Putin gives an interview to state television there. In it he speaks favorably about Beijing’s recommendations for peace negotiations with Kiev. Meanwhile, his army is blanketing Ukraine with drones and missiles.
Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to see China’s proposals for peace negotiations for Ukraine as a possible path to ending the war. Beijing’s recommendations could become a realistic basis for peace agreements, Putin said in an interview with Chinese television published by the Kremlin. The Kremlin chief is traveling to Beijing this Tuesday to meet party and state leader Xi Jinping and take part in the Silk Road summit.
At the same time, Putin accused Ukraine of not allowing peace negotiations: “How can you hold negotiations if they don’t want to and have published a normative document that prohibits these negotiations?” The prerequisite for the start of negotiations is a lifting of the decree and a willingness to talk, Putin said.
Kiev had repeatedly stated that the Russian troops had to withdraw before negotiations could begin. China’s peace initiative was met with skepticism in Ukraine and the West because the country is considered an ally of Russia and has never condemned the war. In February, for example, China called for a ceasefire and negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in a position paper.
Attacks on Dnipro
Russia recently attacked Ukraine again with drones, missiles and cruise missiles. Ukrainian air defense reported this morning that two cruise missiles had been shot down and eleven of twelve drone strikes had been repelled. According to authorities, there was damage after a rocket hit in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
According to the Kremlin, Putin and Xi Jinping also want to discuss other issues of international politics at their meeting in Beijing. They are expected to discuss the situation in the Middle East. Numerous state guests from other countries are expected at the Silk Road Forum, which last took place in 2019.
Putin is now traveling abroad again after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against him in March. He is not at risk of being arrested in Beijing. China has never acceded to the so-called Rome Statute of the Court in The Hague, Netherlands and can therefore ignore the arrest warrant