German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on China not to provide Russia with weapons for its war against Ukraine, asking Beijing to "use their influence in Moscow to urge the withdrawal of Russian troops" instead, Reuters reported on March 2.
Sholz's remarks come after multiple U.S. officials publicly stated that China was considering providing lethal aid to Russia.
Washington is reaching out to close allies about the possibility of coordinating sanctions against China if the country makes such a decision, four unnamed U.S. officials and other sources told Reuters earlier.
Scholz delivered a speech to the German parliament dedicated to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine a few days after China outlined its vision for the "political settlement" of the war, calling for ceasing hostilities and moving to peace talks.
Having previously criticized China's peace plan for not explicitly including the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory, the chancellor said Berlin was in talks with its allies about providing security guarantees to Ukraine, according to Reuters.
He did not specify what form the guarantees might take but added they would only work if Ukraine wins the war.
Scholz also said, as quoted by Reuters, that there "cannot and will not be a peace agreement over the heads of the Ukrainian people."
"One also does not achieve peace when one shouts "never again war" here in Berlin, and at the same time demands that all weapons deliveries must be stopped."
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Feb. 24, as quoted by Ukrainska Pravda, that he did not consider China's proposal a peace plan.
He added, though, that the document included respect for international law, which already makes it possible to work with China, and expressed his desire to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
