All articles tagged with #political settlement
A top Chinese envoy is traveling to Ukraine and Russia to discuss a "political settlement" to the war, raising questions about China's attempt to position itself as a peacemaker and the growing closeness of Putin and Xi. Experts discuss the relationship between the two leaders, China's response to the war, and the possibility of China providing Russia with lethal aid.
China's special representative for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, will visit Ukraine, Russia, Poland, France, and Germany on a multi-day trip aimed at discussing a "political settlement" to the Ukraine crisis. Li's visit comes weeks after Chinese President Xi Jinping held a phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, and several European leaders have urged Xi to play a more active role in restraining Moscow's actions. However, China's ties with Russia have led to skepticism in the West regarding its proposals to end the conflict.
China is sending a special envoy to Ukraine to seek a "political settlement" to the ongoing conflict in the country's east. The envoy, Sun Guoxiang, will meet with Ukrainian officials and representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics. The move comes as China seeks to increase its involvement in global diplomacy and conflict resolution.
Syria has agreed to take steps to end drug trafficking across its borders with Jordan and Iraq, according to a statement issued after a meeting of Arab diplomats in Amman. The foreign ministers of Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Jordan met to discuss how to normalise ties with Syria as part of a political settlement of its war. The talks are the first between Syria's government and a group of Arab countries since a decision to suspend Syria's membership of the Arab League in 2011 after a crackdown on protests against President Bashar al-Assad.
Jordan will host a meeting of Arab foreign ministers and Syria's top diplomat on Monday to discuss Syria's return to the Arab League as part of a broader political settlement of Syria's more than decade-old conflict. The meeting comes two weeks after talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia between the Gulf Cooperation Council, as well as Egypt, Jordan and Iraq, failed to reach agreement on Syria's possible return to the Arab fold. The Jordanian initiative calls on Damascus to engage with Arab governments collectively on a step-by-step road map to end the conflict.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the first time since Russia's invasion. Xi confirmed that an envoy would travel to Ukraine and other countries to help conduct "in-depth communication" with all parties for a political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. Despite its claims of neutrality and calls for peace talks, Beijing has offered Moscow much-needed diplomatic and economic support throughout the invasion.
Syria and Saudi Arabia are taking steps to resume consular services and flights between the two countries for the first time in more than a decade, following a visit by Syria’s top diplomat to Saudi Arabia, the first since the kingdom cut off diplomatic relations with Syria in 2012. The joint statement issued on Thursday agreed on the need for a “comprehensive political settlement of the Syrian crisis that would … achieve national reconciliation, and contribute to the return of Syria to its Arab fold”. Syria's membership in the Arab League is expected to be discussed at the next Arab League summit in May, but some members, mainly Qatar, have opposed Damascus’s return to the organisation.
Egypt and Syria have agreed to strengthen cooperation during the first official visit by a Syrian foreign minister to Cairo in more than a decade, signaling a mending of ties with President Bashar al Assad. The visit was aimed at putting in place steps for Syria's return to the Arab League through Egyptian and Saudi Arabian mediation. Egypt reiterated its backing for a "comprehensive political settlement to the Syrian crisis as soon as possible".
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for a "rational way" out of the Ukraine crisis, acknowledging that it will not be easy to reach a solution. Xi's visit to Moscow is his first since Putin sent Russian troops into Ukraine in February 2022, with Beijing casting itself as a neutral party even after it reaffirmed its close ties with its northern neighbour. Xi will be the first world leader to meet Putin since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against him last week.