Russia's war in Ukraine
Special Representative of the Chinese Government for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui speaks during a welcome reception titled 'Join us at charming Yanqing for the Beijing Winter Olympics' as nearly 40 representatives from Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states, observer states and dialogue partners visit Yanqing district on April 29, 2021 in Beijing, China. (Photo by (Fu Tian/China News Service/Getty Images)
A Chinese envoy will be in Kyiv on Tuesday and Wednesday, a source within the Ukrainian government has told CNN.
Last week, China’s foreign ministry announced that its special representative of Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, would visit Ukraine to “promote peace talks.” It said Li would travel to Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany and Russia during the tour.
CNN has now confirmed that the talks will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Some context: In a press briefing last week, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters that “the visit of Chinese representatives to the countries concerned is another manifestation of China's commitment to persuade and promote talks, fully demonstrating that China is firmly on the side of peace.”
The visit will come after Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky by phone last month for the first time since Russia's invasion began last year.
China has repeatedly attempted to portray itself as a peacemaker in the conflict, but Western countries have viewed Beijing’s intentions with deep suspicion as it forges deepening ties with Moscow.
Source: CNN
