NEW YORK– Three days before his communist government turns 75, China’s foreign minister on Saturday warned his fellow leaders of an “expansion of the battlefield” in Russia’s war with Ukraine and said the government in Beijing remains committed to shuttle diplomacy and efforts to bring the conflict to an end.
“The top priority is to commit not to expand the battlefield. … China is determined to play a constructive role,” Wang Yi said. He warned against other countries “adding fuel to the fire or exploiting the situation for selfish gain,” a likely reference to the United States.
Wang’s speech did not appear to break new ground generally China’s recent practice during the annual meeting of leaders of the UN General Assembly. His boss, Chinese President Xi Jinping, has not attended the leaders meeting since 2021 – and then only virtually, during the pandemic. Xi has not done that personally attended for several years.
On Friday, China and Brazil tried to build enthusiasm for their parliaments on the sidelines of the meeting peace plan for Ukraine. They said about a dozen countries signed a communiqué saying they were “taking down” the six-point plan. The plan calls, among other things, for a peace conference with both Ukraine and Russia and no expansion of the battlefield.
Ukrainian officials have done that given the proposal a cold shoulderbut the countries that signed the communiqué are forming a group of ‘friends for peace’ for their UN ambassadors to keep the conversation going among themselves. Its members range from Algeria to Zambia and are largely African or Latin American countries. Wang noted Friday that the group does not determine the policies of individual countries.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a news conference on Saturday that Russia was ready to provide assistance and advice to the group, adding that “it is important that their proposals are backed by reality and not merely copied from some abstract conversations.”
China has been an ally of Russia, a country accused by Secretary General António Guterres, the US and many world nations of violating the UN Charter. Moscow insists its so-called ‘special military operation’ is in self-defense, which is permitted in the UN Charter.
China’s continued and vehement emphasis on respect for the sovereignty of other countries is not just a cornerstone of its foreign policy, but a fundamental ethos for the government of a country that has traditionally struggled to maintain control on the edges – of Xinjiang and Tibet in the far west. to Hong Kong and Taiwan off the east coast.
The current Chinese government was established on October 1, 1949, when it was proclaimed by communist revolutionary-turned-leader Mao Zedong in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, following a civil war with the nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek. The nationalists began ruling Taiwan as a self-governing island, and that practice continues today – and is something that China rejects, insisting it is only a temporary situation for territory it considers sovereign.
“There is no such thing as two Chinas or one China-one Taiwan. There is no gray area in this regard,” Wang said. “Taiwan will eventually return to the embrace of the motherland. This is the overwhelming trend in history that no one can stop.”
The Republic of China – the government in Taiwan established by Chiang Kai-shek – was a member of the United Nations until 1971, when the UN recognized Beijing’s government. Since then, Beijing has worked to isolate Taiwan by rewarding countries that recognize it diplomatically and sometimes punishing those that do not. At every high-level meeting of the General Assembly, the leaders of scattered countries that support Taiwan – usually small ones – complain on stage about how the island’s government is being shunned by the international community.
Wang also discussed China’s positions on rising tensions in the Middle East and the situation on the Korean Peninsula. The latter has always been an important strategic priority for Beijing.
THE MIDDLE EAST: Wang said that “the issue of Palestine is the biggest wound in human conscience,” reiterated China’s support for the Palestinian state and full UN membership and stressed that a two-state solution is “the fundamental way out.” He did not mention Israel by name or directly refer to the war that began when Hamas fighters crossed the Gaza border into Israel, killing hundreds of people and taking dozens hostage.
THE KOREAN PENINSULA: Similar to Chinese policy, Wang expressed support for a transition “from the ceasefire to a peace mechanism.” Technically, the two Koreas are still in a state of war since a 1950-53 conflict divided the peninsula into north and south. China has long been a backer of North Korea, while the United States is a close ally of the South. He issued a veiled warning to others trying to pull the strings in East Asia: “We firmly oppose the interference of countries outside the region.”
The Korean Peninsula split into US-backed, capitalist South Korea and Soviet-backed, socialist North Korea after its liberation from Japan’s 35-year colonial rule at the end of World War II in 1945 .The two Koreas have the most power in the world. heavily fortified border.
HUMAN RIGHTS: Wang reiterated China’s usual talking points, saying that “no country should violate the internal affairs of another in the name of human rights” and emphasizing that China had chosen its own path, which is as legitimate as others.
“We have found a path for human rights development that suits China’s national situation,” Wang said.
Other countries and international rights groups have long condemned Beijing’s treatment of Tibetans, ethnic Uighurs in the far western region of Xinjiang and, more recently, activists in Hong Kong’s “special administrative region.”
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Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz and Edith M. Lederer contributed to this report. See more of AP’s coverage of the UN General Assembly at https://apnews.com/hub/united-nations