China Says ‘Reason and Causality’ Are Needed To Understand, and Solve, the Ukraine Crisis

Feb. 23, 2022 (EIRNS)—Speaking at the Foreign Ministry press briefing today, Director of the Foreign Ministry Department of Information and Assistant Foreign Minister Hua Chunying responded to a question from China Daily that “A few U.S. media outlets believe that China’s remarks and position on Ukraine contradict the principle of respecting state sovereignty and territorial integrity that China always champions,” with a blunt lesson in statecraft.

“Reason and causality are important when trying to understand things. There is a complex historical context on the Ukraine issue and the current situation is the result of the interplay of many complicated factors. In order to have an objective understanding of the situation and seek a reasonable and peaceful settlement, it is necessary to learn the whole story on the Ukraine issue and properly address each other’s legitimate security concerns on the basis of equality and mutual respect. Certain countries should ask themselves: When the U.S. drove five waves of NATO expansion eastward all the way to Russia’s doorstep and deployed advanced offensive strategic weapons in breach of its assurances to Russia, did it ever think about the consequences of pushing a big country to the wall?”

Likewise she told CCTV:

“On the Ukraine issue, lately the U.S. has been sending weapons to Ukraine, heightening tensions, creating panic and even hyping up the possibility of warfare. In stark contrast, China has all along called on all parties to respect and attach importance to each other’s legitimate security concerns, strive to resolve issues through negotiation and consultation, and jointly safeguard regional peace and stability.”

She pointed out Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s call for getting back to the Minsk 2 agreements at the Feb. 18-20 Munich Security Conference. But the onus for the present escalation of the crisis, she placed squarely on the actions of the U.S.

“State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi also stressed while attending a special event on China during the 58th Munich Security Conference that all sides should earnestly assume their responsibility and work for peace instead of increasing tensions, stoking panic, or hyping up war. A key question here is what role the U.S., the culprit of current tensions surrounding Ukraine, has played. If someone keeps pouring oil on the flame while accusing others of not doing their best to put out the fire, such kind of behavior is clearly irresponsible and immoral,” she said.

In response to France’s AFP, which ask whether there were any circumstances under which China would impose sanctions, Hua Chunying replied: “Our position is that sanctions are never fundamentally effective means to solve problems. We consistently oppose all illegal unilateral sanctions.”