Xi Jinping knows Putin has grossly violated international law, UN Charter - diplomat Bryza

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"The most important element that is missing from the text of China's peace initiative is a call for Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine. This indicates that Xi Jinping is really trying to quietly support Russia and Putin. Other elements of the formula also implicitly criticize Russia and call on it to act differently. China's peace plan embraces the fundamental international legal principle of the territorial integrity of states and their sovereignty," emphasized Bryza.

According to the diplomat, Xi Jinping, like Vladimir Putin, knows that Putin has grossly violated the basic principle of international law and the UN Charter with his unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, which began in 2014.

"We conclude that Xi Jinping does not blindly support Putin. He realizes that in order to achieve a just peace, Russia must withdraw all its troops from Ukraine. Otherwise, Russia will be violating the territorial integrity of Ukraine," Bryza added.

• In February, China published a document with a position on the "political settlement" of Russia's war against Ukraine. Beijing called for respect for the sovereignty of all countries, a ceasefire, negotiations, a solution to the humanitarian crisis, and the protection of civilians and prisoners of war.

• On March 20, Chinese President Xi Jinping held a meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow for 4.5 hours. 

• On April 4, French President Emmanuel Macron will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Paris calls for redoubled efforts to stop China from increasing its support for Russia's invasion. 

• US President Joe Biden says that China has not yet provided Russia with lethal weapons for the war in Ukraine, but this does not mean that it will not do so in the future.