China strengthens ties with Russia as Europe seeks solutions to Ukraine war

In Beijing and kyiv the difference between China and Europe regarding the war situation in Ukraine. While a Chinese representative held negotiations in Europe to end the war, Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced a notable increase in trade between China and Russia. The West sees it as a kind of economic lifeline for Moscow that undermines the sanctions it has imposed to pressure Russia’s exit from Ukraine.

“Russian natural gas has entered thousands of homes in Chinaand Chinese cars travel the streets of Russiawhich fully demonstrates the strong resilience and broad prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation”Wang said at an annual press conference held on Thursday.

Hours later, Chinese envoy Li Hui was listening to a summary of the horrors of the war, presented by Ukrainian officials in kyiv. It is not known how Li reacted. China issued a statement on Friday saying only that Li arrived by train at noon, had frank and friendly talks, and left by train that same night.

The war in ukraine has created a deep division between West and China which puts Beijing’s relations with Europe, an important trading partner, at risk and further strains relations with USA.

USA and Europe they have asked China and its ruler, Xi Jinping, to use their close relationship with the present Russian Vladimir Putin to persuade him to end the war. This seems unlikely, based on official Chinese statements and official media coverage.

“We oppose any attempt to blame China or transfer to China the responsibility to resolve the Ukraine crisis”said Wang, the Chinese foreign minister, last month at the Munich Security Conference in Germany.

China has criticized sanctions against Russia rather than joining them, accusing West to fuel the fight to provide Ukraine with weapons for its defense. Avoid using the words “war” and “invasion” to describe the conflict and cites NATO expansion as the root cause.

“What good are sanctions against Russia after all these years of sanctions by the West?“questioned Li Xin, director of the Institute of Asian and European Studies at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law. “Other countries should act as China. Adding fuel to the fire and providing weapons and ammunition to Ukraine will never solve the problem”.

Expectations were low ahead of Li’s trip to kyiv on Thursday as part of his second European tour to seek a deal for Ukraine. He started in Moscow last week, then met with officials of the European Union and Switzerland in Brussels, and held talks in Poland before his half-day visit to the Ukrainian capital. Later, she will visit Germany and France.

On his first trip, made in May 2023, he did little more than raise the position of Chinasaid Abigael Vasselier, who at the time was an official in the European Union and participated in the conversations.

“They are not ready to change their position regarding Russia and, in that sense, they are not a credible actor to find common ground with all of us” noted Vasselier, who currently heads the foreign relations team at the Mercator Institute for Chinese Studies in Berlin.

Li’s meeting with Swiss diplomat Gabriel Luechinger in Brussels on Tuesday received some attention because China He has not said whether he will participate in a peace conference that Switzerland is trying to organize in the spring.

In Poland, Deputy Foreign Minister Wladyslaw Bartoszewski told Li that China should not support politically, economically and militarily Russiaand that he disagreed with attempts to justify the Russian invasion on the grounds of security concerns.

In a statement from Ukraine It is indicated that his conversations with Li included possible help from China in the prisoner exchange, the return of Ukrainian children who are in Russia and the return of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which Russia took control of during the fighting in 2022.

“It is very important that you hear firsthand about the situation on the front, what is happening, and where we are.Andriy Yermak, director of the presidential office, reportedly told Li.

He china trade with Russia It was already growing rapidly before the war and has continued to do so during it. It has gone from US$108 billion in 2020 to US$240 billion in 2023.

Chinese automakers entered the market as their Western counterparts abandoned it. Russia, which was not even among the top 10 destinations for Chinese car exports in 2022, moved to the top of the list last year.

They were exported to Russia more than 900,000 vehicles in 2023, far exceeding the 415,000 exported to Mexico, the second largest market, the Automobile Manufacturers Association of Mexico indicated last week. Chinabased on data from Chinese customs.

The European Union and USA announced two weeks ago new sanctions against companies and individuals suspected of supporting the war effort Russiaincluding some Chinese.