China confirmed that it will not provide Russia with weapons, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address on July 24.
His statement came after Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Guangzhou. This is Kuleba's first trip to China since the outbreak of Russia's full-scale war.
"There is a clear signal that China supports Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty. It was also confirmed what Chinese leader Xi Jinping told me — that China will not supply weapons to Russia," Zelensky said.
Beijing has positioned itself as neutral country but has simultaneously deepened economic ties with Moscow and backed Russia against Western sanctions. It has also shaped up to be Russia's leading source of dual-use goods that feed the Russian defense industry.
China denied it was supplying Russia with arms to use against Ukraine, while the U.S. said that Beijing gave Russia "every support behind the scenes," threatening to impose more sanctions against the country.
Kyiv has repeatedly appealed to Beijing to use its sway over Moscow to help bring an end to the war, but these efforts have been largely unsuccessful, as the East Asian country snubbed the June global peace summit in Switzerland.
Zelensky blasted China over supposedly trying to sabotage the summit efforts, drawing a rebuke from Beijing.
China proposed its own alternative peace plan, which would include a conference recognized by both Kyiv and Moscow.
During the visit, Kuleba said that Kyiv is ready to engage Russia in the negotiation process at a certain stage, when Moscow is ready to held talks "in good faith," adding that no such readiness is currently observed on the Russian side.
Kateryna Hodunova
(Updated: )
