Zelenskyy outlines expectations for Trump's meeting with Xi Jinping
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Getty Images)
Ukraine would like the United States to persuade China to reduce its purchases of Russian oil. This would help bring the war to an end, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during a meeting with Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel.
The Ukrainian President emphasized that he does not see any way for Ukraine to pressure China directly. He stressed that pressure should only be applied to Russia.
Ukraine, therefore, supports the US policy of limiting Russian energy exports to other countries, as Russia uses the revenue from oil and gas sales to fund its war.
Zelenskyy noted that there has already been a response after sanctions by US President Donald Trump and the European Union. For example, India has decided to reduce its imports of Russian oil. It is an important result.
"Now there is China, which imports Russian energy. If Trump manages to talk with China or reach an agreement to reduce imports of Russian energy, I think it will help all of us," the President said.
He also recalled that he had already spoken by phone with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who assured him at the time that China would not supply weapons to Russia. However, Ukraine observes that China is providing Russia with machinery for weapons production and helping it circumvent sanctions. Chinese mercenaries are even fighting on Russia's side.
"So we would like China to put pressure on Russia to end this war and in no way help continue it," Zelenskyy added.
Trump and Xi Jinping meeting
Earlier, the White House announced that US President Donald Trump will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, October 30.
The meeting will take place at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea.
The talks are expected to focus primarily on US-China bilateral relations. In particular, Trump aims to reach an agreement on rare earth metals.
For more details on what the US and Chinese leaders will discuss and what it means for Ukraine, see the material by RBC-Ukraine.
