China envoy sees ‘many difficulties’ preventing Ukraine peace talks

AFP | Beijing

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com    

China’s special envoy for Eurasian affairs said yesterday there remained “many difficulties” ahead before Ukraine and Russia can sit down for peace talks on ending the war.

Speaking to journalists in Beijing following a tour of Europe that saw him visit Moscow and Kyiv, Li Hui said he believed “all parties support a political settlement” of the war.

“There are currently many difficulties faced by the various parties in sitting down and engaging in talks,” he said. But, he added, those fighting the war are “not without points of consensus”.

“The two sides have not fully shut the door on peace talks,” Li insisted. He also laid blame for the conflict on the West, which has sent arms to Ukraine in a bid to assist it in its fight against the Russian offensive.

“If we really want to stop the war, save lives and achieve peace, we should stop sending weapons to the battlefield,” Li said.

“The painful lessons of how the Ukraine crisis developed to its current state merit deep reflection by all parties,” he added.

“In essence, the Ukraine crisis is the massive outbreak of contradictions in European security governance.”

Li last month toured a host of European capitals as Beijing seeks to play a mediating role in Russia’s war in Ukraine.

And yesterday he suggested Beijing could send another delegation to the region, though he did not give a concrete date or say where such a group might go.