The Chinese made a political comeback for Western audiences. Financial Times issued a number of political statements of diplomats there, important to the Ukrainian audience:
- We do not trust and understand Putin, he has lost his mind. We distance ourselves from his war, we didn't even know about it.
- Political investments in Russia have not justified themselves, they must be reviewed.
- We believe that after defeat in the war, Russia will turn into a "minor political and economic power."
- We will do everything to prevent a conflict with the rest of the world, especially with Europe.
In these statements, you can see the outline of warming between the US and China. At least Xi is trying to please Biden. Beijing even changed the minister of foreign affairs, a conservative, to the rather liberal ambassador to the United States. Xi has toned down his belligerent rhetoric on Taiwan, and Washington says the situation around the island is improving.
The FT article is a product of the non-public diplomacy of China's revamped Foreign Ministry, which is run by Qin Gang, a man with American contacts and experience. Such an unofficial declaration of political course. Although you shouldn't have too many illusions.
It is unlikely that the Chinese leadership did not know about the military plans of the Russian Federation, and the PRC will certainly not give up the idea of annexing Taiwan. The current soft rhetoric is situational. China has learned from the war and realized that it is not yet ready to face the world.
The PRC continues to use Russia to distract the attention of the West and as a donor for its economy (oil is already at $37 per barrel). Both roles do not bode well for the Russian Federation - an isolated country under sanctions with resource dependence on Russia.
In any case, warming relations between China and the USA is a good trend for Ukraine.
