Pure political calculation by China – and nothing more

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For Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (45), it was a “long and fairly reasonable conversation”. This is the first telephone call since the start of the war between him and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping (69) on Wednesday.

The call was also well received in the West. For the European Commission, it symbolizes an “important, long-awaited step by China”. Germany speaks of a “good signal”. Even the US considers contact “a good thing”. And even the Kremlin welcomes “anything that brings the end of the conflict in Ukraine closer”.

Phone calls yield little result

There is rarely so much unity in the current conflict. Seen soberly, however, the two heads of state only come to two concrete conclusions. The Chinese government will send a special envoy for Eurasian affairs to Ukraine to discuss a political solution to the crisis. Beijing will also send humanitarian aid to Kiev.

The importance of the call should not be undermined: it is the most concrete step China has taken to assume the mediator role it has hinted at for months.

But everything else China claims to have said is not new. They want to remain committed to early peace talks, they take “no sides” in the conflict, a nuclear war will end “with no winners”. The Chinese government has been repeating the same sentences since the beginning of the war.

Conversation is part of the charm offensive

The call came just days after an incident involving China’s ambassador to France, 58-year-old Lu Shaye. In an interview with French television station LCI on Friday, he said the former Soviet states had no “effective status” in international law. The states addressed reacted angrily, including Ukraine. So Xi just wanted to calm things down with the talk?

Analysts from “CNN” then discovered another exciting detail. The call comes as China focuses on strengthening ties with Europe amid crumbling ties with the United States. The Chinese ruler wants to prevent America and Europe from closing ranks. The phone call therefore resembles a PR campaign aimed at the West.

In short, China has not changed its mind about the war. Xi still maintains his “boundless friendship” with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin (70).

Source: Blick