Chinese Foreign Minister: Invisible Hand Using Ukraine Crisis to Serve a Specific Geopolitical Agenda
JAKARTA - The Ukraine crisis appears to have been driven by an invisible hand pushing it to the protracted and escalating conflict, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said on Tuesday.
"The invisible hand is using the Ukraine crisis to serve certain geopolitical agendas," Minister Qin said on the sidelines of the annual parliament meeting in Beijing, calling for dialogue to start as soon as possible.
"Conflict, sanctions and pressure will not solve the problem. The peace talks process must start as soon as possible, and the legitimate security concerns of all parties must be respected," Minister Qin exclaimed.
Foreign Minister Qin's repetition of China's position on the Ukraine war comes amid rising tensions between Beijing and the European Union, which has questioned China's sincerity as a mediator when it refuses to label Russia as the aggressor in the conflict.
Foreign Minister Qin also said Beijing was not providing weapons to the two sides to the conflict in Ukraine, amid stern warnings from US officials about unspecified "consequences" for China if it sent lethal aid to Russia.
"(China) is not a party to the crisis and has not provided weapons to any of the warring parties. So on what basis is the talk of guilt, sanctions, and threats against China? This is completely unacceptable," he stressed.
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At the same time, Menu Qin said China should advance its relations with Russia, due to the world becoming more turbulent and the close interaction between President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
He did not give a definitive answer when asked whether President Xi would visit Russia after China's parliamentary session.
It is known that since Russia invaded its southwest neighbor a year ago, President Xi has held talks several times with President Putin, but not with his Ukrainian counterpart. This undermines China's claim of neutrality in the conflict, Kyiv's top diplomat in Beijing said last month.