China and France today called for a ceasefire in armed conflicts around the world ahead of the Summer Olympics in Paris. At a press conference after the meeting in Paris, Chinese President Xi Jinping made the call, and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron thanked him for it. He also called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and a peace conference on Ukraine, to which both Kyiv and Moscow would agree.
Today, Xi described the war between Israel and the Palestinian radical movement Hamas as a “continuing tragedy” and called on the international community to act. “We want a complete and long-term truce in Gaza,” the Chinese president also said practically at the same time when the agencies reported that Hamas had agreed to a draft truce agreement with Israel after long negotiations.
He also spoke out for Palestine becoming a full member of the UN and for continuing discussions on a two-state solution in the Middle East, i.e. the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
Regarding the war in Ukraine, according to the Chinese president, negotiations are needed in which both sides would start building mutual trust. He thinks it’s time for a peace summit and a “fair discussion”. Sia’s words can also be seen in the context of the upcoming peace conference, which will take place in Switzerland in June at the initiative of Ukraine. But Russia has already made it clear that it will not participate.
Today, in relation to the war in Ukraine, Macron welcomed China’s “commitment” not to “sell any weapons” to Russia.
According to the West, although Beijing has not yet provided Moscow with lethal weapons, it has been supporting Russia diplomatically for a long time, and it is also indirectly supporting the country that sparked the conflict by providing it with a large amount of machinery, microelectronics or technology for drones and guided missiles.
