China’s foreign minister has stressed the urgent need to prevent further escalation in the Ukraine conflict and to secure support for a diplomatic resolution.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi has stated that ending the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is an urgent priority and that China is prepared to work with Hungary to garner support for a peaceful resolution. During a phone conversation with his Hungarian counterpart, Peter Szijjarto, on Tuesday, Wang mentioned that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban had engaged in strategic communication with Chinese President Xi Jinping on significant peace-related issues during Orban’s recent visit to Beijing.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry revealed that Beijing considers promoting de-escalation in Ukraine as the most pressing matter. According to the statement, Wang conveyed to Szijjarto that all parties should agree on a consensus to avoid expanding the battlefield, prevent further escalation of the war, and refrain from fueling the conflict.
Wang commended Hungary’s constructive role in mediating for peace, adding that Beijing is ready to cooperate with Budapest to mobilize forces supporting peace, amplify rational voices, and propel the situation towards a political solution. Szijjarto also confirmed his country’s willingness to collaborate with China in creating conditions for resolving the crisis.
Beijing has consistently urged peace talks between Ukraine and Russia and proposed a 12-point peace plan to end hostilities on the first anniversary of the conflict in February 2023.
The conversation between Wang and Szijjarto follows Orban’s recent “peace mission” to Ukraine, Russia, China, and the US earlier this month, aiming to discuss pathways for resolving the conflict. Orban, a vocal critic of the West’s approach to the hostilities, launched this diplomatic tour immediately after Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the European Council at the start of July.
During a visit to Kyiv, Orban proposed a “quick ceasefire” to Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky, which was rejected by the latter. Orban then traveled to Moscow to discuss the “shortest way out” of the conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Hungarian leader subsequently visited Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump in the US, who stated that “there must be peace, and quickly.” Orban has also held talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He believes that the US, EU, China, and Türkiye could act as mediators in settling the Ukraine crisis.
While Orban’s peace initiatives have faced pushback from some EU members who contend that Hungary does not represent the bloc, the Hungarian prime minister has dismissed the criticism. Orban maintains that he is “helping Europe” by striving to bring the warring parties to the negotiating table.