“Peace formula” for Ukraine: Zelensky says China’s Xi Jinping told him he would not sell any weapons to Russia

NEW DELHI: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Chinese President Xi Jinping assured him in a telephone conversation that China would not sell arms to Russia, during a joint press conference with the US President Joe Biden at the G7 summit in Italy on Thursday.

Although he did not specify the date when the conversation took place.

Zelensky said: “I had a firm conversation with (the) Chinese leader. He said that he will not sell any weapons to Russia. We will see if he is (a) respectable person, he will not do it , because he gave me (his) word.”

Following Zelensky's statement, Biden said: “By the way, China is not providing weapons but the capacity to produce those weapons and the technology available to do so, so they are actually helping Russia.” »

The Ukrainian leader added that if Ukraine and China share the same views on peace, there could be a dialogue between the two nations. However, if China had a different perspective, he suggested they could develop an alternative “peace formula.”

Zelensky actively advocates his own vision of peace in Ukraine, which he calls a “peace formula.”

Switzerland is due to host an international summit this weekend attended by delegations from many countries and organizations to discuss ways to bring peace to Ukraine.

The last publicly known phone call between Zelensky and Xi took place in April 2023, the only such communication since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

(With contribution from agencies)