The German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, expressed this Saturday in New Delhi his reservations about the plan of peace that China presented to find a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine and considered that the initiative has “lights and shadows”.
On the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, China published a 12-point document on Friday in which it demands “respect for sovereignty” and maintaining “territorial integrity” of all countries, two demands raised by Ukraine, as well as “abandoning the Cold War mentality”, “taking legitimate security concerns seriously ” and “stop unilateral sanctions”, complaints mentioned above by Russia.
the text too urges a ceasefire and a call for “restraint” to “prevent the situation from getting out of control”and makes explicit the need to start peace talks, given that “dialogue and negotiation are the only viable way out to resolve the crisis.”
During a visit to India, Scholz considered this Saturday that the proposal “has lights and shadows.” In this sense, the German head of government maintained that there were things that were “remarkably correct”, such as the condemnation of the use of nuclear weapons, but questioned that there is no recognizable line saying that Russian troops have to withdrawreported the DPA news agency.
Scholz also stressed the importance of achieve a just and equitable peace and not a “Russian-style dictatorial peace”something that, in his opinion, the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, should also understand.
US, EU and NATO views
The German chancellor’s reaction was in line with what was expressed by kyiv’s Western allies. Both the United States, the European Union (EU) and NATO on Friday described the Chinese peace plan as “insufficient”, amid criticism of the proximity of the Asian giant to the Kremlin.
He NATO chief Jens Stoltenbergshowed his skepticism regarding the proposal, stating that China “does not have much credibility” in this conflict, while the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, expressed that the document supposes a series of “principles”, more What a peace plan.
The United States authorities, meanwhile, criticized the Beijing proposal and indicated that they are “closely” watching the movements of the Asian giant, which, according to what they said, could be preparing to “deliver lethal weapons to Russia.”
However, the Chinese proposal was welcomed by both kyiv and Moscow, albeit with nuances.
In that document, “it seems to me that there is respect for our territorial integrity, security issues. We must work with China on this point,” said Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski yesterday, who announced that he plans to meet with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping .
For its part, the Russian government said it “appreciates” China’s plan, in which it sees a “sincere” willingness to achieve peace, in particular because they agree on aspects such as the end of international sanctions or the demand for certain guarantees of security.
The The UN also analyzed that the Beijing proposal constitutes an “important contribution”especially in the call not to use nuclear weapons.