US State Department Welcomes China's Attendance at Ukraine Peace Conference as a Productive Activity

Inducing Russia's Diplomatic Isolation by Not Attending in Person
Russia: "No Desire for Additional Territory Beyond Existing Occupied Areas"

The U.S. government has welcomed the attendance of the Chinese delegation at the 2nd Ukraine Peace Conference held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Analysts suggest that China, which has opposed sanctions against Russia and shown pro-Russian behavior, sending a delegation to this peace conference itself symbolically demonstrates Russia's diplomatic isolation. Russia has also hinted at the possibility of a ceasefire talk by indicating that it does not seek territory beyond its current occupation in Ukraine, drawing attention to how the direction of the Ukraine war may change in the future.

On the 6th (local time), at the 2nd Ukraine peace talks held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the host seated the Saudi Arabian delegation (center) with the U.S. delegation (right) and the Chinese delegation (left) on either side. Jeddah=Reuters·Yonhap News

According to CNN on the 7th (local time), Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, said at a press briefing that day, "We have long said that if China is willing to respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, it would be productive for China to play a role in ending the war in Ukraine," welcoming China's dispatch of a delegation to the peace conference.

Earlier, on the 6th, the 2nd Ukraine Peace Conference held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was attended by delegations from over 40 countries worldwide, including South Korea, the United States, China, and India. In particular, global attention was focused on the fact that the U.S. and Chinese delegations participated together with the host country, Saudi Arabia.

This was because the Chinese delegation, which had shown pro-Russian behavior after the Ukraine war and refused to attend the 1st Ukraine Peace Conference, attended this meeting unusually. Major foreign media analyzed that China's attendance itself symbolically shows Russia's diplomatic isolation.

It was also reported that Jake Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, and Victoria Nuland, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, who were dispatched as U.S. representatives to this meeting, met separately with Li Hui, China's Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs.

The Russian side has also hinted at the possibility of future peace negotiations. Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Kremlin, said in an interview with The New York Times (NYT) on the 6th, "Russia wants to control the land of the regions annexed to our territory," indicating that Russia does not want more territory beyond the four Ukrainian regions it currently occupies and has annexed.

The four regions refer to Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson provinces, where forced annexation was carried out following a referendum held last September after the outbreak of the Ukraine war. This is interpreted as meaning that Russia does not want to escalate the conflict beyond the territory it already occupies. However, Peskov said regarding a specific peace agreement with Ukraine, "There is currently no basis for an agreement."