Beijing is sending its special envoy to Ukraine, who was awarded the Order of Friendship medal by Vladimir Putin.
Li Hui, China’s Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs, will begin his European tour on Monday, May 15. He will first visit Kyiv, then France, Germany and Poland to “discuss a political solution to the crisis in Ukraine,” and end Lee’s trip to Russia.
It should be noted that Hui was China’s ambassador to Moscow for a decade until 2019 and is considered a “true friend” in the Russian Federation, moreover, before leaving for Beijing, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave to him the Order of Friendship medal. This, of course, worries the Ukrainians, but in Kyiv they say that they will stand firm and will not make concessions to Russia.
Message from Beijing
China’s Foreign Ministry said in a release that it will send its special envoy to Kyiv and Moscow next week to “negotiate to end Russia’s war against Ukraine.”
“Ambassador Li Hui will visit Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany and Russia to discuss with all parties a political settlement of the crisis in Ukraine,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press conference.
Li’s trip will demonstrate China’s “commitment to promoting peace and negotiations,” he said.
“This fully shows that China is firmly on the side of peace. China is willing to continue to play a constructive role in achieving international consensus on a ceasefire, ending the war, opening peace talks and -avoid worsening the situation,” Wang said.
Visit the background
Chinese President Xi Jinping last month, in his first talks with Volodymyr Zelensky after the massive Russian invasion, announced that Beijing would send a representative to Ukraine. At the time, the West took the gesture as a desire by the Chinese leader to boost his image as a global peacemaker after he came under pressure for not condemning the war and Vladimir Putin himself.
Note that the conversation with Zelensky took place shortly after China’s ambassador to France questioned the sovereignty of other former Soviet states under international law. This caused anger from European countries, particularly the Baltic states. Beijing later deleted the transcript of the remarks and said they did not reflect official government policy.
A step to improve relations with Europe and the US
One of the European diplomats in Beijing told Bloomberg that the visit of the Chinese delegation was very positive and during his mission in Ukraine, Li Hui will gather and establish all the facts of the war.
He also added that Poland is likely to be included in Lee’s itinerary as it has been clear about possible actions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Henry Wang Huiyao, founder of the Center for China and Globalization, also called the decision to send a Chinese representative to Ukraine “really significant.”
“China should be an active mediator and participate so that people take it seriously and people see that China can play a positive role,” he said.
“This will improve relations both with European countries and, of course, even with the United States,” added the expert.
news Correspondent.net on Telegram. Subscribe to our channel Athletistic
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.