After months of apparent reluctance to engage with Kyiv on the same level as Moscow, China said Wednesday that it will send special representatives to Ukraine and hold talks with all parties on resolving the crisis there.
Chinese state media said that President Xi Jinping told his Ukrainian counterpart President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a phone call that Beijing will focus on promoting peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, and would make efforts for a cease-fire to be reached as soon as possible.
Commenting on the call, which he described as “long and meaningful,” Zelenskyy said he believed it would “give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relation.”
Ukraine has been waiting for an audience with Xi since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and particularly after Xi’s recent visit to Moscow in March.
In other news, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree Tuesday establishing temporary control of the Russian assets of two foreign energy firms, a sign that Moscow could be prepared to take similar action against other foreign companies.
Putin signs decree taking over Russian assets of two foreign firms
President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed a decree establishing temporary control of the Russian assets of two foreign energy firms, signalling Moscow could take similar action against other companies if need be.
The decree — outlining possible retaliation if Russian assets abroad are seized — showed Moscow had already taken action against Uniper’s Russian division and the assets of Finland’s Fortum Oyj.
The decree said Russia needed to take urgent measures to respond to unspecified actions from the United States and others it said were “unfriendly and contrary to international law”.
The shares in the two entities have been placed in the temporary control of Rosimushchestvo, the federal government property agency, the decree said.
In February, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Russia should bear the costs of damage caused by its war on Ukraine, adding though there were “significant legal obstacles” to confiscating major frozen Russian assets.
The CEO of state-owned bank Bank VTB had on Monday said Russia should consider taking over and managing the assets of foreign companies such as Fortum, only returning them when sanctions are lifted.
Rosimushchestvo said more foreign firms could find their assets under temporary Russian control, TASS reported. The agency would ensure the assets were run in accordance with their importance for the economy.
“The decree does not concern ownership issues and does not deprive owners of their assets. External management is temporary in nature and means the original owner no longer has the right to make management decisions,” TASS cited the agency as saying.
Source: Consumer News Business Chsnnel