Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi held three-hour talks in the Chinese city of Guangzhou, Reuters reports.
"The talks have just ended. In total, they lasted more than three hours, longer than planned. It was a very deep and concrete conversation," a Ukrainian source in the delegation told Reuters.
At the beginning of the talks, Kuleba said he expected "thorough and substantive talks on bilateral relations, the international agenda and, most importantly, the path to peace".
"I am convinced that a just peace in Ukraine is in China's strategic interests, and China's role as a global force for peace is important," the Ukrainian diplomat said.
The results of the meeting were later reported by the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It said that the main topic of the talks was the search for ways to stop Russia's aggression and China's possible role in establishing a sustainable and just peace.
"I am convinced that a just peace in Ukraine is in China's strategic interests, and China's role as a global force for peace is important," said Dmytro Kuleba during his meeting with his Chinese counterpart.
He stressed that "Russian aggression has destroyed peace and slowed down development, and each new day of war entails new violations of humanity and further erosion of justice. Therefore, it is necessary to end the war against Ukraine, restore peace and accelerate the restoration of our country."
Kuleba explained to Wang Yi the logic of further steps in implementing the Peace Formula as a way to a just end to Russian aggression. He said that Ukraine is ready to negotiate with the Russian side at a certain stage, when Russia is ready to negotiate in good faith. The minister stressed that currently there is no such readiness on the Russian side.
Kuleba's visit is the first visit to China by a Ukrainian foreign minister since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion and the first full visit since 2012.
China and the war in Ukraine
China, Russia's long-standing and reliable trading ally, calls Russia's attack on Ukraine a "crisis" rather than a war. Publicly, Beijing supports Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, but at the same time, it is increasing cooperation with Moscow, holding top-level meetings with the Russians and talking about a "comprehensive partnership".
In 2022, Beijing presented its own vision of peace in Ukraine. The plan had rather dubious positions, such as "lifting unilateral sanctions" and an actual ceasefire without the condition of withdrawal of occupation forces.
In 2023, after the first conversation between the Ukrainian president and the Chinese leader during the full-scale war, Beijing announced the visit of Li Hui, the special representative for Eurasian affairs. In addition to Ukraine, he visited the EU and Russia. The second "voyage" of the Chinese diplomat took place in March 2024.
In May 2024, China and Brazil unveiled a joint plan to end the war, which, according to the Chinese side, was supported by two dozen countries. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated that it is Ukraine, on whose territory the war is taking place, as the party that is fully suffering from the devastating consequences of Russian aggression, that should determine what peace should look like. The only fair basis for achieving such peace is the Peace Formula.
China did not send a representative to the peace summit in Switzerland in June. China demanded that Russia's representatives be seated at the table with world leaders, but this condition was not possible at the first summit. In general, China insists on the need to end the war through negotiations.
Ukraine emphasises the importance of China's role in establishing peace because of its influence on Russia. After the first peace summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy admitted that Chinese representatives persuaded other countries to cancel their participation in the event.