China unveils its peace plan

KYIV. Feb 24 (Interfax-Ukraine) – On Friday, China presented a 12-point peace plan to end the Ukrainian-Russian war.

In the document posted on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the first point is “respect for the sovereignty of all countries.” “Universally recognized international law, including the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, must be strictly observed. The sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be effectively upheld,” according to the text.

“Abandoning the Cold War mentality. The security of a country should not be pursued at the expense of others. The security of a region should not be achieved by strengthening or expanding military blocs,” the officials said in the second point.

China’s other proposals include a cessation of hostilities. “All parties should support Russia and Ukraine in working in the same direction and resuming direct dialogue as quickly as possible, so as to gradually deescalate the situation and ultimately reach a comprehensive ceasefire,” according to the text.

China also offers to resolve the humanitarian crisis, protect civilians and prisoners of war ensure the safety of nuclear power plants, reduce strategic risks (no nuclear weapons and no nuclear wars), promote grain exports, end unilateral sanctions, maintain the stability of production and supply chains, promoting post-conflict reconstruction.

The Chinese Embassy in Kyiv told Interfax-Ukraine that the document is based on the “four necessities” proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping; “four general positions” which the international community should adhere to, and the Three Observations on the crisis.

As the embassy explained, the “four general positions” are that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states should be respected, the purposes and principles of the UN Charter should be respected, the rational security concerns of all countries should be taken seriously, and all efforts should be supported to contribute to the peaceful resolution of the crisis.

“The four ‘common positions’ to be followed by the international community imply that the international community should support all efforts to promote a peaceful resolution of the crisis in Ukraine and call on the parties concerned to remain prudent, exercise restraint, and establish direct contacts as soon as possible and create conditions for renewal of negotiations; stand together against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons, uphold the inadmissibility of the use of nuclear weapons and the conduct of nuclear wars, and prevent a nuclear crisis in Eurasia; work together to maintain the stability of global production and supply chains, and prevent the disruption of international cooperation in energy, food, financial and other fields in order to avoid harm to the recovery of the global economy, especially to the economic and financial stability of developing countries; make a collective effort to help the civilian population in the areas affected by the crisis, survive the winter and improve the humanitarian situation, preventing an even greater humanitarian crisis.”