A report in US media on Thursday indicated it was probable that China may not send representatives to a Ukraine-organized international summit in Malta this weekend.
The meeting is intended to bring together security officials from various corners of the globe, with a specific focus on countries that have so far remained non-aligned, according to the report.
Ukrainian spokesperson Andrey Yermak outlined the agenda of the so-called ‘peace formula’ meeting scheduled to take place Saturday and Sunday, including food, humanitarian issues, energy and nuclear security, and “the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity.”
The Volodymyr Zelensky regime in Ukraine still lays claim to breakaway provinces in the eastern Donbass region, whose leaders long expressed desire to become part of Russian territory. Zelensky also hopes to reestablish Ukrainian control of Crimea, where people overwhelmingly voted to become part of Russia in a 2014 referendum.
Zelensky has proposed a 10-point plan to resolve military confrontation between Russia and Ukraine since last year. Among the items stipulated by Zelensky are a tribunal to prosecute alleged Russian “war crimes” and a withdrawal of Russia from territory still claimed by Ukraine. The proposal, long on Ukrainian demands and short on acknowledgment of Russia’s security concerns, has been dismissed by Russian officials as unserious.
18 September 2023, 04:08 GMT
Among the countries sending representatives to the summit in Malta are Qatar, India, South Africa, Turkiye, and members of the G7, according to the report. Other countries, including Brazil and Chile, will participate in the meeting virtually.
Among those not present will be Russia; Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova slammed the summit as “pointless and counterproductive” on Thursday, claiming foreign countries were being coerced to take part via “blackmail and threats.” An official from Turkiye previously claimed meetings not including Russia would be “futile,” yielding “no results and no solution.”
Beijing has charted an independent course on the issue since Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine in February last year. China has rejected calls to take part in Western sanctions against Russia and has acknowledged Moscow’s security concerns as NATO has continuously expanded eastward. The Asian world power has previously claimed China and Russia enjoy a “boundless friendship.”