Foreign media reported that French President Emmanuel Macron, who is on a state visit to China, met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the 6th and said, “I expect China to bring Russia to its senses.”
President Macron, who is visiting China for three days from the 5th, asked President Xi to help build lasting peace in Ukraine at a meeting with President Xi that day.
According to The Washington Post (WP), President Macron mentioned China’s support for the UN Charter and the nuclear agreement, which respect a country’s territorial integrity. “I believe you can bring Russia back to its senses and bring everyone back to the negotiating table, based on the two principles I just talked about,” he said.
“We must find lasting peace,” he said. “I think this is an issue for China as important as it is for France and Europe.”
Xi did not comment on Ukraine or Russia, but said he welcomed relations with France. He described China and France as “strong drivers of global multipolarization (multilateral system).” The global multilateralism refers to a system in which the United States does not rule the world alone, nor does the United States or China divide and rule the world.
Earlier that day, President Macron said at a meeting with Prime Minister Li Chang, second in power of the ruling Communist Party, that “France wants to establish a ‘common road’ in dealing with ‘all major conflicts’ besides Ukraine.”
Li said there was likely a “broad agreement” between Macron and Xi, but declined to say whether China would be willing to lobby Moscow for peace. Premier Li only said that the meeting would send a positive signal to China, France and Europe’s joint efforts to maintain world peace and stability.
President Macron went to China with great expectations to find a solution to end the war in Ukraine. CNN reported, however, that “it is unclear whether additional statements mentioning the war will be released during the French president’s visit.”
At the same time, he said that Ukraine was the top agenda for this visit, but the economic aspect was also strong. During the visit, Macron, accompanied by a delegation of around 50 business leaders, expected to finalize contracts under discussion, or to conclude some new contracts.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.