The Ukrainian President expressed his desire to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the points of China’s proposal for a ceasefire, on the first anniversary of the Russian-Ukrainian war. China put forward a 12-point proposal calling for talks between Russia and Ukraine, saying national sovereignty should be respected. Zelensky said Beijing’s proposal appears on What appears to be “there is respect for our territorial integrity.” For its part, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that any settlement must recognize its sovereignty over four regions it says it has included under its rule.
Last year, Moscow announced that it had annexed four regions of Ukraine – Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia – although its forces do not fully control any of them. Meanwhile, Western figures have received a lukewarm reception for the proposal. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Beijing “does not have much credibility” because it “was not able to condemn the illegal invasion of Ukraine”.
The Chinese proposals come after a visit by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Moscow on Wednesday, during which he met with President Putin.
Speaking at a lengthy news conference marking the one-year anniversary of the invasion, Zelensky said the Chinese plan was “an important signal that it is willing to engage.”
He added, “China has started talking about Ukraine, and this is not a bad thing.” And he added that he sees the Chinese proposals as “ideas” and not a concrete plan, and said that he wants to believe that Beijing will not provide weapons to Russia. Earlier this week, Beijing was considering supplying weapons and ammunition to Russia — a claim that Beijing has vehemently denied. Zelensky also said he plans to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, but gave no details. On February 24, 2022, Russian leader Vladimir Putin forces to Ukraine with the aim of seizing the capital, Kiev, and dismissing the Zelensky government. But the attack on Kiev was repulsed, and the Ukrainian army was able to restore some areas that fell under Warsea control, and the conflict became a devastating war of attrition for lands in the eastern Donbass region.
Sanctions package “harder”
On the other hand, the European Union approved a new package of sanctions against Russia, after consultations that continued until the last moments, according to a statement issued by the rotating presidency of the Union, which Sweden currently holds.
image copyright EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
“Together, the members of the European Union have agreed to impose new sanctions, the most severe and far-reaching, to assist Ukraine in the war,” the statement said.
“The European Union stands united with Ukraine, and the Ukrainian people, and we will continue to support Ukraine for as long as necessary,” the statement, posted on Twitter, added.
The new sanctions package includes harsher restrictions on exports, with regard to dual-use goods, in addition to sanctions on institutions that support the war, publish Russian propaganda, or supply parades used by Russia.
“What was required here was to send a message of our unity and solidarity with Ukraine on this special day,” said a diplomat who attended the secret meetings of member states and the negotiations that took place during them.
The new package of sanctions is the tenth against Russia, since the beginning of the war last year, and they were all designed to reduce Russia’s capabilities to finance its war in Ukraine, and to deprive Moscow of the necessary technical equipment, spare parts required for the maintenance of military equipment, and weapons.
The new package included measures targeting personalities that the West says promote Russian propaganda, other personalities that Ukraine accuses of transporting Ukrainian children to Russia, and personalities responsible for producing Iranian marches that Russia uses in the war.
The package also targeted a number of banks, including private banks – such as Alfa Bank and Tinkoff Digital Bank – and they were excluded from the SWIFT system for bank transfers, thus reducing the volume of intra-regional trade between Russia and European Union members by about 10 billion euros.
Do sanctions hurt Putin?
Analysis by Sarah Rainsford – BBC correspondent in Eastern Europe
Are there any signs that the sanctions will turn a section of the Russian elite against Putin?
It is not clear what will change in the long road to Putin’s calculations, as he is the only person driving it.
The invasion was Putin’s grand plan, drawn up with little consultation, and without any honest judgment, by, as we know, people close to him.
They feel afraid to tell him the truth, so personalities who secretly reject war, including government ministers, continue their work that supports the continuation of the invasion, and may openly justify and encourage war.
Although Russia did not achieve a quick victory in the war as Putin expected, he will likely get more involved in it than withdraw from it.
I think it’s easy to say that Russia’s rich people, who used to have fun shopping in London or skiing in Italy, are not satisfied with having their assets frozen and banning them from traveling to the West.
Even leaving or entering Russia these days is difficult for them, but what can they do? It’s quite another matter.