BEIJING (AP) — China said Friday it would be “difficult to meet” calls for discussions on the Russia-Ukraine war, citing problems with arrangements that appear to reflect Beijing’s strongly pro-Moscow stance .
Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said: “China’s hopes seem difficult to realize at the meeting.
“There is still a clear gap between the arrangements for the meeting and the demands of the Chinese side, as well as the general expectations of the international community,” Mao said.
Mao did not provide details but said China “has informed the relevant parties of our considerations and concerns.” and would maintain contact with all parties involved. China claims to be neutral in the conflict but has strongly supported Russia and recently hosted President Vladimir Putin on a state visit.
In an interview with China’s official Xinhua news agency published on Wednesday, Putin praised his ties with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and said that “President Xi maintains a respectful, friendly, open and at the same time businesslike style of communication.”
“Every meeting of ours is not only a dialogue between old friends … but also a fruitful exchange of views on the most current issues on the bilateral and international agenda,” Putin said.
Putin praised Beijing’s peace plan for Ukraine, which has been largely rejected and which makes no demands for Moscow to return land it has seized, and said that “we commend China’s approach to resolving the crisis in Ukraine. ”
Switzerland had proposed the talks for the coming days in the hope of ending the war, which was sparked by Ukraine’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, but they have not been approved by either Moscow or Kiev.
___
Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
