China and India at the UN on Saturday called for a negotiated end to the Ukraine war, stopping short of robust support for traditional ally Russia.
After a week of pressure at the UN General Assembly, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov spoke from the General Assembly rostrum to deliver a fiery rebuke to Western nations for what he termed a “grotesque” campaign against Russians.
However, no major nation has rallied behind Russia, including China, which just days before the February invasion of Ukraine had vowed an “unbreakable” bond with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Photo: AFP
Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) called on both Russia and Ukraine to “keep the crisis from spilling over” and from affecting developing countries.
“China supports all efforts conducive to the peaceful resolution of the Ukraine crisis. The pressing priority is to facilitate talks for peace,” Wang said.
“The fundamental solution is to address the legitimate security concerns of all parties and build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture,” he said.
Photo: AFP
During his visit to the UN, Wang met with Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba, in their first talks since the war began.
Putin earlier this month acknowledged Chinese “concerns” about Ukraine during a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).
US officials have been heartened by what they see as China’s lack of concrete backing for the war and say that Beijing has declined requests to send military equipment, forcing Russia to rely on North Korea and Iran as its supplies dwindle.
China’s reaction to Russia is being closely watched for clues on its approach to Taiwan.
India, unlike China, has a warm relationship with the US, but it has historic ties with Russia, its traditional defense supplier.
“As the Ukraine conflict continues to rage, we are often asked whose side we are on,” Indian Minister of Foreign Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said.
“Our answer, each time, is straight and honest — India is on the side of peace and will remain firmly there,” he said. “We are on the side that calls for dialogue and diplomacy as the only way out.”
Lavrov at a news conference declined to answer whether there has been any pressure from China. In his speech, he sought to cast blame squarely on the West.
“The official Russophobia in the West is unprecedented. Now the scope is grotesque,” Lavrov told the General Assembly. “They are not shying away from declaring the intent to inflict not only military defeat on our country, but also to destroy and fracture Russia.”
The US since the end of the Cold War has acted as if it is “an envoy of God on Earth, with the sacred right to act with impunity wherever and whenever they want,” Lavrov said.
He also blasted the EU as an “authoritarian, harsh, dictatorial entity,” and said the bloc’s leadership forced one member state’s leader — Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades — to cancel a planned meeting with him.
Lavrov criticized the West for not engaging with Russia.
“We have never stepped away from maintaining contact,” he said.
Western powers are looking at further sanctions after Putin called up reservists and made a veiled threat to use nuclear weapons, and have vowed not to recognize results of referendums on Russian annexation being held in occupied territories.
Russia enjoyed one rare voice of support at the General Assembly. Mali’s interim prime minister, Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, appointed by coup leaders, hailed the “exemplary and fruitful cooperation” with Moscow.
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