(Reuters) – The Kremlin said on Wednesday it was not up to Russia to advise Chinese President Xi Jinping on whether he should visit Ukraine or not.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has extended an invitation to the Chinese leader to visit, the Associated Press reported earlier on Wednesday.
“We know China’s balanced position, we value it highly and we believe the leader of China makes his own decisions on the expediency of certain contacts. We have no right to offer any advice here,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
China’s Xi visited Putin in Moscow last week and the pair issued a joint statement referring to a 12-point Chinese proposal for dialogue and an eventual ceasefire in the Ukraine war.
The Chinese plan met with a dismissive response in Washington, given Beijing’s refusal to condemn Russia’s invasion. The United States says a ceasefire now would enable Russia to hold on to Ukrainian territory it has seized and give its forces time to regroup.
Ukraine has welcomed China’s diplomatic involvement but Zelenskiy has said he will only consider peace settlements after Russian troops leave Ukrainian territory.
(Reporting by Reuters, Editing by Andrew Osborn and Angus MacSwan)
