On the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China has called for a cease-fire between the two nations and for talks to end hostilities in Eastern Europe.
On Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a 12-point plan to end the conflict, The Associated Press reported. The proposal also urges the end of Western sanctions imposed on Russia, measures to insure nuclear facilities and the establishment of humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians, the news organization reported.
China also proposed a corridor to ensure the export of grain from Ukraine.
The plan also states that “nuclear weapons cannot be used and nuclear war cannot be fought,” according to The Guardian.
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had not seen a peace proposal from the Chinese but would welcome a meeting between Ukraine and China, according to the news organization.
“We would like to meet with China,” Zelenskyy said during a news briefing in Kyiv with the visiting Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez.
China also called for an end to the “Cold War mentality,” a standard explanation for what it regards as U.S. interference in other countries, the AP reported.
On Thursday, the U.N. General Assembly adopted a nonbinding resolution calling for Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine, Politico reported. A total of 141 of the body’s 193 members — 73% — voted in support of the resolution, which needed a two-thirds majority to pass.
China abstained, according to the AP.
