Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at [email protected] or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification. China’s
consistent position on solving the Ukrainian issue exclusively through political means is understandable, and its emphasis on the need to respect the territorial integrity of all countries and to prevent the use of nuclear weapons is indeed meant to strengthen global security.
At the same time, due to Beijing’s disproportionate proximity to Moscow, both Kyiv and other Western capitals are increasingly
calling into question statements about China’s neutrality. This situation does not contribute to the mutually beneficial development of China’s bilateral or multilateral relations with these countries and increasingly affects China’s economic interests.
Commenting on the latest sanctions, which encompassed
a number of Chinese companies, Zhang Hong, a senior research fellow at the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that the sanctions show the US and the West are not prepared to compromise with Russia. He also noted that although Ukraine has recently been passive on the battlefield, it’s unlikely to suffer a rout.
China, as a large country with great ambitions, simply cannot ignore the fact that for two years, Ukraine was able not only to withstand the fight against a state about 28 times its size, but also to become one of the strongest countries in Europe militarily. Perhaps it is time for Beijing to take a new look at its concept of big countries and recognise that Ukraine, as a cornerstone of the European security architecture, is gradually becoming one of them.
In this context, it is important to note that Ukraine has always been friendly to China, the direct interests of the two countries do not intersect, and Kyiv, like Beijing, is not a supporter of camp confrontation. The desire of Ukraine to become a member of Nato is an exclusive decision of the Ukrainian people and is caused by existential necessity. The latter corresponds to the Chinese vision of the need to take into account the security concerns of all countries.
