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Moscow, Oct 16 (EFE).- The foreign ministers of Russia and China, Sergei Lavrov and Wang Yi, respectively, discussed today in Beijing the sharp worsening of the situation in the Middle East due to the war between Israel and the Islamist movement of Hamas in Gaza, as well as the armed conflict in Ukraine, which today turns 600 days old.
According to Russian diplomacy, both ministers had “a deep exchange of views on a wide range of international and regional problems, including the sharp deterioration of the situation in the Middle East.”
Both Moscow and Beijing have reiterated in recent days that the settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict requires a two-state solution that coexists in peace and security, and they have advocated protecting the civilian population.
Lavrov and Wang also discussed security issues in the Asia-Pacific region in detail, especially with regard to maintaining stability on the Korean Peninsula and the need to “prevent the ASEAN-centric security structure from being undermined” by the West.
They also discussed the issues of the “Ukrainian crisis”, including efforts to resolve it through political and diplomatic methods.
China offered to mediate in the war that Russia launched 600 days ago in Ukraine with a 12-point plan that is seen by Moscow as a “base” for eventual negotiations, but rejected by Kiev, since it does not require the withdrawal of troops. Russians from all the territories they occupy.
Lavrov and Wang also stressed the importance of strengthening close coordination between Russia and China at the international level, including at the UN and its Security Council, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the G20, APEC and other mechanisms and forums, according to the Russian version.
Likewise, the two ministers confirmed their mutual commitment to strengthening contacts in the BRICS Forum (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), taking into account that next year the rotating presidency of that group will fall to Russia.
Beijing, Oct 16 (EFE).- The foreign ministers of China, Wang Yi, and Russia, Sergei Lavrov, met today in Beijing, where the head of Russian diplomacy will attend the Third International Forum of the New Silk Roads .
Lavrov arrived this Monday in the Chinese capital, where he will remain until the 18th, according to what the Russian Foreign Ministry announced a week earlier, while whether or not Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend remains a mystery.
Neither Moscow nor Beijing have officially confirmed whether Putin will be present at the aforementioned forum, which celebrates the tenth anniversary of China’s flagship multilateral program to strengthen its international influence through cooperation and infrastructure projects in other countries.
The presence of several leaders is confirmed at the meeting, including those of Argentina, Alberto Fernández; Chile, Gabriel Boric; Kenya, William Ruto, and the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres.
The Third International Forum of the New Silk Roads will begin on Tuesday with a business meeting and a welcome banquet, and will have its high-level segment on Wednesday, when Chinese ruler Xi Jinping will deliver a keynote speech.
Putin has not yet traveled abroad this year, even more so since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children against him.
If he does not participate in the Chinese event, his first trip will be on Thursday to Kyrgyzstan, where he will meet with his counterpart, Sadir Zhaparov, with whom he will also visit the Russian military base in Kant on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Security Treaty Organization. Collective (OTSC).
On September 20, the head of the Kremlin accepted China’s invitation to participate in the forum during a meeting with Wang in Russia.
The advisor for International Affairs of the Russian Presidency, Yuri Ushakov, also announced at the end of last July that Putin was planning a trip to China in October.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov, in turn, said at the beginning of the month that the agenda of Putin’s visit to the Asian neighbor would include the discussion of issues that are already clear and that “are quite voluminous,” such as bilateral trade, economic cooperation and the global and regional situation.
In February 2022, shortly before the beginning of the Russian military intervention in Ukraine, Putin and Xi proclaimed in Beijing the “limitless friendship” between their nations.
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