Moscow wants Beijing to act as advocate for Kremlin's interests – Feygin

He said this on the air of the Espreso TV channel.

"Perhaps China wants to join the peace talks, wants to be Moscow's frontman? Perhaps for this, Russia needs to gain full control over Donbas, enlisting the support of Beijing. Perhaps Moscow thinks that it will move the West's position toward negotiations more quickly, and the West, in turn, will persuade Kyiv. It seems to me that this is logical, it is the only explanation. Another question is what Beijing gets as a result of this. Well, Beijing gets control over Moscow. But it already has it, that control over Moscow at the right level," Feygin emphasized.

The oppositionist also added that Beijing does not care whether it gains control over Russia with or without Donbas.

"To be honest, Beijing would have negotiated with a sovereign Ukraine in the same way to protect its economic interests. But to claim real expansion? Beijing has no such capabilities in Donbas or Crimea, and why should it? Beijing already has all the opportunities for economic expansion. Perhaps this is a game started by Moscow. And it will try to enlist Beijing's support in this game. After all, Moscow alone will not be able to break through the peace talks. All hope is that Beijing will succeed, acting as an advocate for the Kremlin's interests," Feygin said.

• Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang warned that Russia's war against Ukraine will escalate if negotiations are not started immediately.