Beijing's unhappy with Trump's Russian turn
The Global Times describes Trump’s attack on Zelensky as interference in internal affairs and his proposal to end the war a hasty solution that risks increasing tensions, further complicating geopolitical dynamics. China does not want to be left on the sidelines of the issue. Some analysts see a "Nixon in reverse" effect to break Xi-Putin axis.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – “China's position on the Ukraine crisis is consistent and clear,” writes the Global Times, citing Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun's response to a question about what China thinks of the clash between Trump and Zelensky after US overtures to Russia at the Riyadh summit.
The answer was curt and formulated according to the usual canons of China’s Foreign Ministry's daily press conferences, and is not the only sign of Beijing's lack of enthusiasm for the direction the White House's diplomatic initiative is taking with Moscow.
Trump’s optimism about the possibility of an agreement with China over more than trade issues, like investments, was not enough to sweeten the pill, the New York Times reports.
If just two days ago Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking at the UN Security Council, seemed open to the summit in Saudi Arabia, stating that “China supports all efforts conducive to peace talks,” now Beijing is afraid of being left on the sidelines and seeing the strategic advantage it acquired with closer relations with Russia evaporate, especially after three years of Russia’s isolation by the West.
Recent coverage by the Global Times, the English-language newspaper linked to the People's Daily, the newspaper of the Communist Party of China, reflects how things are being received in China.
The paper cites Li Haidong, a professor at China Foreign Affairs University, who said that China already “released a paper stating its position on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis in 2023, and China has always been staunch promoters of peace talks and political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.”
Regarding Trump's comments on Zelensky and Ukrainian elections, Li believes “that it represents a typical case of US intervention in other countries' internal affairs.”
“The expert added that the sharp turn in US-Ukraine relations and the spat between the two leaders reflect the fact that Ukraine was used as a pawn by the US during the crisis, the difference is that the Biden administration used Kyiv to deplete Moscow, while the Trump administration seeks to sacrifice Ukraine in order to extract the US from the quagmire.”
“Li added that the US' handling of the Ukraine crisis looks hasty, which risks escalating tensions, further complicating the geopolitical dynamics surrounding the Ukraine crisis, making it more complex, volatile, and increasingly difficult to resolve.”
Some analysts have begun to talk about a "Nixon in reverse" syndrome, citing the 1970s, when US overture towards mainland China shifted the balance of power in the Cold War with Moscow in Washington's favour.
“Even if it is just 30% of a 'reverse Nixon',” said Yun Sun, director of the Stimson Center, a Washington think tank, on CNN, “That’s going to make Xi Jinping question the strategic alignment that (he spent) the past 12 years to build with Russia – ‘maybe it’s not that dependable, maybe it’s not so solid.’”
Beijing is certainly not willing to give up a seat at the table on the future of Ukraine, and could find common cause with the European Union, the other major player excluded from the talks between Washington and Moscow in Saudi Arabia.
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