Steinmeier urges China to use its influence on Russia to end war against Ukraine
German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called on China, as a member of the UN Security Council, to make efforts to compel Russia to end its war against Ukraine.
He said this during a speech at Peking University, Censor.NET reports.
People want an end to suffering
"China is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and has close relations with Russia. So let us work together to ensure that Russia stops its attacks and begins serious negotiations," Steinmeier said.
He stressed that after almost five years of war, longer than the First World War, after hundreds of thousands of deaths, and after daily attacks on heat supplies, infrastructure, and water and electricity supplies, especially now as winter approaches, people long for an end to the suffering.
"They rightly expect us to work towards this, using our different capabilities but acting together," the German president added.
China’s interests at risk
Steinmeier noted that China’s interests were also at stake.
"As a major economic and trading power, your country depends on conflicts not turning into permanent blockades. If shipping through maritime routes such as the Black Sea, the Strait of Hormuz or the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is threatened, supply chains, energy supplies and food security around the world are threatened. The longer these conflicts continue, the weaker the entire global economy becomes, and with it, one of its largest economies: China," he explained.
