China 'Tried To Convince' Ukraine To Start 'Peace Talks' On Russian Terms, No Troop Withdrawal

The talks were heavy on pomp and ceremony as Putin and Xi hailed a 'new era' in the relationship between their countries

China is trying to get Ukraine on board with its peace plan to end the Russia-led conflict, an expert on Ukrainian-Chinese affairs revealed.

Yurii Poita, the head of the Asia-Pacific Section at the Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies in Kyiv, said that Chinese experts directly affiliated with China's government tried to find out how ready Ukraine is for peace talks with Russia when they had discussions a few days ago with their Ukrainian counterparts.

Poita argued that China's proposal for a peace settlement echoed Russia's conditions.

"A few days ago, we held discussions with Chinese experts, who are directly affiliated with the Chinese government, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense. And we saw a very clear attempt by China to find out whether Ukraine is ready for peace negotiations on Russian terms, without the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine," Poita said during a briefing at civic initiative Media Center Ukraine Tuesday.

"They tried to convince us that it was necessary," he added.

No arguments from Ukraine could convince the Chinese side, who "tried to push these so-called peace talks," according to the expert.

Poita said that China's pressure campaign urging Ukraine to begin negotiating with Russia was also "evident" in the "rhetoric of Chinese leaders before and during the visit itself."

The Ukrainian expert's remarks came amid Xi Jinping's three-day state visit to Russia, as the Chinese leader tried to project himself as a global peacemaker.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Xi following two days of discussions, Russian President Vladimir Putin applauded China's peace plan, saying it aligned with Russia's point of view.

"We believe that many of the provisions of the peace plan put forward by China are consonant with Russian approaches and can be taken as the basis for a peaceful settlement when they are ready for that in the West and in Kyiv. However, so far we see no such readiness from their side," Putin said Tuesday.

Xi argued that China's peace plan reflects his "objective" and "impartial view" of the conflict in Ukraine while boasting about his line of communication with Putin.

China's proposal for a political settlement contains 12 points, including ceasing hostilities, resuming peace talks, removing United Nations-imposed sanctions, and avoiding an escalation to a nuclear conflict.

However, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky trashed China's proposal, arguing it has "no balanced logic" and accommodates Russia's peace conditions.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak suggested that China's peace plan does not urge Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukrainian territory.

Podolyak also voiced his opposition to any proposal to keep Crimea and parts of the Donbas region in Russian control in exchange for an immediate end of the war, insisting that Ukraine would disagree with territorial compromises.