China urges peace in Ukraine after US warning not to help Russia

China said on Monday it was seeking dialogue and peace for Ukraine despite warnings from the United States that Beijing may be considering supplying weapons for its Russian ally’s invasion.

Air raid sirens sounded in the capital Kiev and other cities overnight and a Russian missile killed one person in the western city of Khmelnitskyi, Mayor Oleksandr Symshyshyn said on the Telegram messaging app.

China, which declared an alliance “unlimited” with Russia shortly before the invasion a year ago, has refused to condemn the offensive and last week published a 12-point plan calling for a ceasefire and gradual de-escalation on both sides.

kyiv He was receptive to some aspects of the plan, but reiterated that there would be no peace without a full Russian withdrawal, something Moscow does not see as an option.

“I really want (victory) to happen this year. For this we have everything: motivation, confidence, friends, diplomacy”Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a message posted Monday on the Telegram messaging app.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that it had been in contact with all parties to the crisis, including kyiv, and that its position was clear.

“The essential thing is to call for peace and promote dialogue and a political solution to the crisis”, declared Mao Ning, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at a press conference in Beijing.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskovsaid on Monday that the Chinese plan had to be scrutinized and the interests of all parties taken into account, but that for the moment Moscow saw no evidence to suggest that a peaceful resolution was feasible.

“It is a very long and intense process.“, he claimed.

The proposals of China They have not impressed supporters of the NATO Ukrainian military alliance, who say they are trying to dissuade Beijing from supplying Russia with lethal aid, which could include drones.”kamikazes”.

The forces of Moscow are suffering heavy losses in trench warfare as they fight to push further into eastern Ukraine, while Kiev envisions a counter-offensive with advanced Western weaponry, including promised main battle tanks, in the coming months.

Washington believes that Beijing is considering the possibility of helping Russia militarily. “If it continues down that path, it will come at a real cost to China.US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN.

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week called the war in Ukraine a battle for Russia’s survival against a rapacious West, hailing “new frontiers” on ties with Beijing and indicated that his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, would visit Moscow soon.

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