Analysts say Ukrainian President Zelensky’s public criticism of China on Sino-Russian relations and his cold attitude toward the upcoming peace summit may ultimately backfire on Kiev.
Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue forum in Singapore on Sunday, Zelensky expressed his dissatisfaction with China’s stance on the war between Russia and Ukraine, accusing Beijing of helping by pressuring other countries not to attend. Moscow disrupts upcoming peace summit in Switzerland.
Ukrainian President Zelensky arrived in Singapore on June 1, 2024 to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue.
Sue Edgar | Reuters
China has firmly denied the accusations, with its foreign ministry saying its stance on Russia and Ukraine was “just and fair” and saying its decision to skip the June 15-16 peace summit was based on the fact that China did not “Equality” position.
Chinese analysts said Zelensky’s outburst was a dangerous move that could anger and alienate Beijing and bring it closer to Russia.
Astrid Nordin, chair of China’s international relations department at King’s College London, told CNBC that China “prefers to cast itself as a benevolent peacemaker and wants the Ukrainian leadership to confirm that role, that relationship and this story.” .
“The risk for Ukraine in refusing to play the role of accepting China’s goodwill is that Chinese leaders may change the script and emphasize that China joins hands with Putin to become a staunch bulwark against Western hegemony,” she noted.
“Zelensky would do little to position himself by encouraging Chinese leaders to emphasize the latter rather than the former,” she said, noting that China could easily signal its opposition to Kiev through its “harsh treatment of Ukraine and entrenched practices.” Signal of attitude change.
Ukraine fails to win over China
Zelensky is angered by continued efforts by Ukrainian officials to court China in the hope that China can exert influence over Moscow and end the war.
However, China’s response has been muted at best, with President Xi Jinping having only one phone call with the Ukrainian president during the war, in contrast to his apparently friendly state visits and meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin . He called the leader his “best friend.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping said goodbye at the end of their talks in Beijing, China, on May 16, 2024.
Mikhail Metzer | Reuters
Beijing’s stance drew an angry backlash from Zelenskiy, who accused Russia and China of plotting to undermine the summit by using their influence to dissuade other countries from attending the event, hoping the move would strengthen the international community’s view of its “peace model” support.
Speaking to delegates at the Shangri-La Defense Forum, Zelensky said that “Russia is using China’s influence in the region and using Chinese diplomats to do everything it can to sabotage the peace summit.” He gave no specific examples to back up his claims.
He added: “It is unfortunate that an independent, powerful country like China has become a tool in Putin’s hands.”
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy had a phone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kiev on April 26, 2023.
Press Service of the President of Ukraine | Reuters
China denies these accusations, Meeting with Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning He said that “hegemonism and power politics are not China’s diplomatic style.” “There is no situation where China is putting pressure on other countries,” she said, adding that Beijing’s position on the talks was “open and transparent.”
Bonnie Glaser, director of Asia programs at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, told CNBC that if Zelensky criticized China “in the belief that it would lead to a change in Beijing’s policy, I doubt it would have that effect.”
Glaser denied China’s claim to be a neutral party. He believed that China’s decision not to participate in the summit reflected that “China prioritizes its relations with Russia, especially the relationship between Xi Jinping and Putin.”
With us or against us?
On December 12, 2023, US President Biden delivered a speech during his meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, USA.
Leah Millis | Reuters
Yu Jie, a senior fellow on China at Chatham House, a London think tank, said Zelensky’s remarks on China specifically showed “his dissatisfaction with China and Russia’s closer alliance rather than abandoning Beijing as a whole.”
“Ukrainians need as many countries as possible to contribute to their post-conflict reconstruction process. Given the existing investments made in Ukraine over the past two decades, China is likely to play a key role in reconstruction. Not just China, but several Emerging economies such as India, South Africa and Brazil have all chosen positions very similar to Beijing’s.
India is expected to send a representative to the peace summit but not senior officials; Brazil will miss the event; South Africa’s attendance has not been confirmed.
She said the Ukrainian government “does not want to reject them completely” but the risk is that Beijing sees the peace summit as “turning into an occasion to accuse any country that does not stand with Ukraine”.
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