Putin, Xi discuss Chinese peace proposal for Ukraine in visit denounced by US
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Loading... - Simon Gatwech
- 21 Mar 2023
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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping discussed Beijing's proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine in talks in Moscow, while displaying a warm friendship forged on a mutual rivalry with the West.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping discussed Beijing's proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine in talks in Moscow, while displaying a warm friendship forged on a mutual rivalry with the West. Xi's visit is a boost to Moscow as it struggles to make ground in its year-long war on Ukraine. It was criticised by Washington as providing "diplomatic cover" for Putin and for the war that has killed tens of thousands of people.
While China has sought to cast itself as a potential peace-maker in the conflict, the visit underlined an ever-closer relationship between Moscow and Beijing. The two men spoke for more than four hours on Monday and enjoyed a state dinner at the Kremlin, warmly praising each other as a "dear friend", Russian media reported. By contrast, Xi may only speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy by telephone, if at all.
In a surprise visit pointedly coinciding with Xi's Moscow talks, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday to deliver a message of solidarity and support for Ukraine. In other developments, Ukraine said an explosion in Dzhankoi in the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula destroyed Russian cruise missiles intended for use by Russia's Black Sea fleet.
On the battlefields in eastern Ukraine, Russia kept up air raids as well as missile and rocket strikes over a wide area, the Ukrainian military said. Ukraine said Russia's main aim was to reach the borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the Donbas, large areas of which are already under Russian control. Russian forces had again made attacks on the city of Bakhmut - site of the longest and bloodiest battle of the war - and other targets but had been repelled, it said. Read More…
