The Russia-Ukraine conflict shows no signs of ending: on the one hand, Russia has fought bitterly on the Udonetsk front for half a year, with heavy casualties, and it has only been "possible" to capture Soledar, a small (pre-war) town of 10,000 people; It was the Russian army that changed generals again. On January 11, the Russian army announced that Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov would replace Aerospace Commander Sergey Surovikin as the new commander-in-chief of Russia's "special military" operations. It is believed that Russia will re-intensify its ground offensive.
The war seems stalemate, but it cannot conceal its unsustainable nature.
The military aid approved by the U.S. Congress can last up to one year. It is still unknown whether the U.S. Congress will continue to support Ukraine after the Republicans take over the House of Representatives.
Judging from the leaders of the United States, France and Germany meeting with Chinese leaders in the past three months and seeking China to put pressure on Russia, it can be seen that the time for peace talks has come.
China's current foreign minister, Qin Gang, has frequently communicated with the media during his tenure as ambassador to the United States for more than a year, and introduced China's position on the Ukraine issue in detail.
From its statement, it can be seen that China's positive and promising intentions will not come out after a thousand calls.
Qin Gang recognizes China's unique position in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and that all parties can speak for themselves, and the solution to the problem also has the shadow of China's comprehensive security concept behind it.
Qin Gang mentioned the examples of China and Central Asian countries in solving geopolitical hidden dangers, suggesting that the SCO approach may be a reference.
The following are some excerpts from Qin Gang’s interview for readers’ reference.
On March 21, 2022, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Qin Gang was interviewed live by Margaret Brennan, host of CBS's "FACE THE NATION" program.
(Weibo @CGTN Russian Channel)
On March 20, 2022, Qin Gang accepted a live interview with Margaret Brennan, host of CBS's "FFace the Nation" (FFace the Nation), mainly explaining China's position on the Ukraine issue.
Brennan:
If President Xi Jinping asks President Putin to stop, will Russia stop there?
Will President Xi Jinping do this?
Qin Gang:
China has been promoting peace talks, calling for ceasefire and cessation of war, and will continue to do so.
Blind condemnation will not help. What we need is wisdom, courage and effective diplomacy.
Brennan:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he wanted to meet with President Putin.
Zelensky is now holed up in a bunker somewhere, while Putin is at a political rally mobilizing for war.
Diplomacy is useless when only one side is willing to engage in actual negotiations.
Qin Gang:
China maintains good relations with Russia and Ukraine, and maintains close communication with the United States and Europe.
This enables China to speak to all parties involved in the crisis.
Therefore,
China is in a unique position to help resolve this crisis peacefully
.
On October 8, 2021, Qin Gang accepted an exclusive interview with a reporter from Phoenix Satellite TV in Washington.
(Chinese Embassy in United States)
On March 20, 2022, Qin Gang was interviewed by Phoenix Satellite TV's "Fengyun Dialogue" column, expounding China's position on Sino-US relations and the Ukraine issue.
Xiaotian:
So if there are such so-called sanctions, what kind of impact will it have on China?
Is China doing assessment and preparation now?
Qin Gang:
Of course, we pay close attention to the next move of the US side. We do not want sanctions to happen, but if it is really imposed on us, as I said just now, we must respond resolutely and forcefully to safeguard our legitimate rights. rights and interests.
At the same time, I also hope that the United States will stop creating more confrontations and contradictions between China and the United States from the perspective of persuading peace and promoting talks to achieve peace.
Well, China and Russia have a relationship of mutual trust. This relationship is long-standing. China and Russia share extensive common interests. We are the two biggest neighbors to each other. Our exchanges in economics, trade, humanities, and various fields are very close.
Then this relationship between China and Russia should not be regarded as a burden or a trouble to solve the Ukraine crisis, but should be regarded as a resource and an opportunity.
Now other parties are seriously opposed to Russia in the conflict, and only China can speak to Russia.
At the same time China is also...
Xiaotian:
Does Russia listen to what China says?
Qin Gang:
Russia is a sovereign country, so it makes independent judgments and actions based on its own national interests. This kind of relationship between China and Russia can be conducive to international efforts to promote peace and talks.
Xiaotian:
Is China worried that such expectations are sometimes too high?
Qin Gang:
Whether such expectations are too high depends on how we use our wisdom to make efforts.
If we blindly ask China to deal with this issue in the way of the United States and the West, it may cause China to lose such a unique status and resources, and it will not help to promote peace talks and achieve the goal of ceasefire and cessation of war. It may even have the opposite effect.
On April 18, 2022, Qin Gang published a signed article entitled "After the Ukrainian Crisis" in the American "National Interest" magazine.
The article reads:
Europe is the place most stressed by the Ukraine crisis.
Expectations of stability and prosperity in Europe seemed to be reversed overnight, replaced by great uncertainty.
To reverse this expectation, we must not only cease fire and war, but also find a fundamental way out for the long-term stability of Europe after the crisis, and explore the construction of a new concept and new structure of European security that is balanced, effective and sustainable.
Reflecting on the diametrically opposite evolution of the security situation at both ends of the Eurasian continent over the past 30 years will help us see where the future security path for Europe and the world lies.
After the Cold War, when Europe embarked on the road of seeking security through NATO’s eastward expansion, at the eastern end of the continent, China, Russia, and Central Asian countries established an unprecedented five-party negotiation mechanism, which opened up the exploration of new security concepts and roads.
In 1996, the same year that President Clinton first announced the timetable for NATO's eastward expansion in Detroit, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan signed the "Agreement on Strengthening Military Trust in Border Areas" in Shanghai. The border issue between China and the former Soviet Union countries ended the history of the Sino-Soviet border with tens of millions of soldiers, and laid the foundation stone of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The principles of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilizations, and seeking common development became the "Shanghai Spirit" "The core of this has realized the long-term good-neighborliness and friendship and common peace between China, Russia and Central Asian countries.
History tells us that different choices bear different fruits.
On August 16, 2022, Qin Gang was interviewed by Reuters, Associated Press, Bloomberg, National Public Radio (NPR), The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, The Hill, POLITICO, AXIOS, Defense One and other American mainstream media jointly interviewed and answered questions from reporters on Sino-US relations, Taiwan issues, Hong Kong-related issues, and China's diplomacy.
KELLY (National Public Radio):
In Washington, there's a lot of discussion about what lessons China should learn from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Can you answer this question, what has China realized with the development of the war in Ukraine?
Do you see similarities or differences with yourself?
Qin Gang:
I don't know what lessons the US should learn from the Ukraine crisis.
China is not directly involved in the Ukrainian crisis, neither in history nor now.
Everyone knows the root of the Ukraine crisis.
This crisis is not between China and Ukraine, China is not a member of NATO.
So why is there a crisis?
This has its complicated historical and practical reasons.
Russia's demands cannot be met by China.
China supports peace and has called for a ceasefire and cessation of fighting from the beginning of the crisis, urging all parties to seek a political solution through diplomatic negotiations.
We did not send any weapons and ammunition, but only sent sleeping bags, medicines and other humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
If there is any lesson to be learned for the US, NATO or other parties, it is how to achieve security.
A country's pursuit of its own security should not be at the expense of the security of other countries, and the legitimate security concerns of all countries should be taken seriously.
This is not a zero-sum game, and the Cold War mentality is not the solution to security problems in today's world.
That's why President Xi Jinping put forward the "Global Security Initiative", calling on all countries to establish a common, comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable security concept.
I hope that all parties involved in the Ukrainian crisis can finally sit at the negotiating table, find a solution to the current predicament, and jointly negotiate and build a future security framework.
On December 26, 2022, Qin Gang, then Chinese ambassador to the United States, published a signed article entitled "China's World View" in the American "National Interest" magazine.
(Screenshot of the American "National Interest" magazine)
On December 26, 2022, Qin Gang published a signed article entitled "China's World View" in the American "National Interest" magazine:
China is highly concerned about the situation in Ukraine.
The historical latitude and longitude of the Ukraine issue and its painful evolution show that: conflicts and wars have no winners; complex problems have no simple solutions; great power confrontation must be avoided.
The top priority now is to promote the Russia-Ukraine peace talks and dialogue with the United States, Europe, NATO, and Russia.
The long-term solution is to abandon the wrong thinking of basing one’s own security on the insecurity of others, and promote the construction of a balanced, effective, and sustainable European security framework. There is no other way.
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