Xi Jinping has a phone conversation with Volodymyr Zelensky for the first time since the beginning of the invasion

President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping had a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. This was reported by the Chinese media. This is the first dialogue between the leaders of the two countries since the beginning of the russian invasion of Ukraine.

The information was confirmed by Zelensky himself:

"I had a long and meaningful phone conversation with President Xi Jinping. I believe that this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine's ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations."

After speaking with Xi Jinping, Zelensky said he was appointing a Ukrainian ambassador to Beijing. Ukraine has not had an ambassador to China since February 2021, when diplomat Serhiy Kamyshev, who held the post, died.

In turn, the Chinese state television company CCTV reported: "During the conversation, Xi promised Zelensky to send his special representative to Kyiv to monitor the situation on the ground.

In addition, China will hold negotiations with all parties involved in the conflict and make efforts to agree on a ceasefire as soon as possible, Xi told Zelensky.

In mid-March, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Xi had intended to hold talks with Zelensky via video link after meeting with russian dictator putin in moscow. Later, the Ukrainian President also invited Xi to Ukraine.

Acting as a mediator between russia and Ukraine, China is trying to consolidate its reputation as a peacemaker. Thus, before the Chinese president's arrival in moscow, Beijing published a 12-point plan for a peaceful settlement. In particular, it called for respect for the sovereignty of all countries, a ceasefire, and the start of peace talks.

In April, French President Emmanuel Macron flew to Beijing to meet with Xi Jinping. At a joint press conference, he called on the Chinese leader to influence putin. Bloomberg reported that the French President had intended to offer China a plan for future negotiations between russia and Ukraine.

However, China's ambiguous position, which refuses to condemn russia's military aggression in Ukraine, is causing skepticism among France's NATO and EU allies.

The day before, Chinese Ambassador to France Lu Shaye called Crimea a "russian" territory. He also questioned the sovereignty of the former Soviet republics. His words provoked a negative reaction from the Baltic states and Ukraine. A day later, the Chinese Embassy removed the transcript of the interview with Lu Shaye, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Beijing "respects the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries."

Background. As a reminder, the Estonian Foreign Ministry summoned a Chinese diplomat due to the Chinese ambassador's statement that "Crimea is russia."

After the scandal erupted, Beijing distanced itself from the statements of its ambassador and assured that it respects the sovereignty of post-Soviet countries.