China says the US is hypocritical on Ukrainian refugees issue

File photo of Obolon district In Kyiv, where Russian shell hit a residential building on March 14, 2022. Photo by Aris Messins (Image credit war.ukraine.ua

Russia makes Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchin hostage

Beijing/Kyiv/Washington: The United States President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. spoke today with President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The conversation focused on Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. While President Biden outlined the views of the United States and its Allies and partners on this crisis, he detailed its efforts to prevent and then respond to the invasion, including by imposing costs on Russia.

Biden described the implications and consequences if China provides material support to Russia as it conducts brutal attacks against Ukrainian cities and civilians. The President underscored his support for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis. Biden also reiterated that U.S. policy on Taiwan had not changed, and emphasized that the United States continues to oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo. The two leaders tasked their teams to follow up on today’s conversation in the critical period ahead.

Xi told Biden that the US and NATO should also have a dialogue with Russia to address the crux of the Ukraine crisis and ease the security concerns of both Russia and Ukraine. Xi informed Biden that China had put forward a six-point initiative on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine, and was ready to provide further humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and other affected countries. “All sides need to jointly support Russia and Ukraine in having dialogue and negotiation that will produce results and lead to peace,” he said. 

Xi stressed that he and President Biden shared the view that China and the US need to respect each other, coexist in peace and avoid confrontation, and that the two sides should increase communication and dialogue at all levels and in all fields.

“The two Presidents had a candid and in-depth exchange of views on China-US relations, the situation in Ukraine, and other issues of mutual interest,” the Chinese foreign ministry stated.

Earlier today, President Xi pointed out that the China-US relationship, instead of getting out of the predicament created by the previous US administration, has encountered a growing number of challenges.

What’s worth noting, in particular, is that some people in the US have sent a wrong signal to “Taiwan independence” forces. This is very dangerous. Mishandling of the Taiwan question will have a disruptive impact on the bilateral ties. China hopes that the US will give due attention to this issue, Xi said and claimed that the direct cause for the current situation in the China-US relationship was that some people on the US side have not followed through on the important common understanding reached by the two Presidents and have not acted on President Biden’s positive statements. The US has misperceived and miscalculated China’s strategic intention, Xi stated.

Lijian meanwhile said he was “not aware” that it had sailed its aircraft carrier, the Shandong, through the sensitive Taiwan Strait today shadowed by a US destroyer. This incident took place just hours before the Chinese and US Presidents were due to talk. Was the timing of this a coincidence? “I’m not aware of the specific situation about the Shandong aircraft carrier… But I’m sure the aircraft carrier has a routine training arrangement. One shouldn’t link this with the communication between the Chinese and US heads of state,” Lijian said.

Before the talks today, China and the United States of America sparred over the crisis in Ukraine that has created millions of refugees. Ahead of the Friday call (USA local time) between Chinese President Xi Jinping and the USA President Joe Biden, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Biden will make clear that China will bear responsibility for any actions it takes to support Russia’s aggression and added that the US will impose costs if China decides to assist Russia.

China reacted by stating today, “The least thing the US should do is to sling mud at China which is not a party directly concerned. The despicable move of the US only serves to reveal its guilty conscience and true intention to shift the blame and profit from the Ukraine crisis.” 

Also read: Russia continues to attack civilians in Ukraine

China further retorted today stating that on the Ukraine issue, Beijing had always made its judgment “independently and in an objective and just manner based on the merits of the matter itself”. It advised Washington to seriously reflect on its role in the Ukraine crisis and the part it has played, effectively assume its due responsibilities and take practical actions to ease the situation and solve the problem, “instead of continuing to add fuel to the fire and shifting problems”.

The Ukraine crisis has created millions of refugees and China said some “deep reflections” were required. “What is the root cause of the ongoing refugee crisis? What role did the US play in the Ukraine crisis? What are US’ due responsibilities and obligations? Could the situation evolve to where it is today had it not been for the seriously imbalanced regional security caused by NATO’s five rounds of eastward expansion? Did the countries that insisted on NATO’s eastward expansion despite opposition expect the suffering of refugees today?” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters in Beijing today.

“On top of the 11 million displaced refugees with their families torn apart due to the 20-year war waged by the US in Afghanistan, another 2.6 million-strong refugees fleeing the Russia-Ukraine conflict have entered European countries, which are the real victims of the current situation, to be honest. However, the US is still looking on and fooling its European allies. During a recent visit to Poland, the US Vice President responded with a laugh rather than a direct answer to whether the US would accept Ukrainian refugees. What people across the globe are seeing is that as the one who initiated and instigated the conflict, the US is hypocritical on the issue of refugees. This is very ironic and telling,” Lijian added. 

Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday repeated President Biden’s assertion that Russian forces are committing war crimes in Ukraine by deliberately targeting civilians. China today instead sought to shift the blame on the USA itself. “As the culprit of the Ukraine crisis, why does the US keep smearing China instead of reflecting on the security predicament in Europe caused by the eastward expansion of US-led NATO? Why doesn’t the US listen to the observation by [former US secretary of state] Dr. [Henry] Kissinger and other experts that Ukraine must not be either side’s outpost against the other? Why doesn’t the US reflect on its hypocritical move of watching the fire from across the river after fanning the flames? I am not sure if it occurred to the Europeans that the US was fully capable of pushing for NATO’s eastward expansion but sent no troops to support the Ukrainian people.”

Claiming that Ukraine was just a pawn to be sacrificed in “major-country rivalry”, Lijian reminded reporters that the US was among the first to evacuate civilians and diplomatic personnel from Ukraine. ” Have you ever imagined that the US would never send a single soldier to fight and die for Ukraine?” he further asked.

Meanwhile, Russia continued to pound Ukraine for the 23rd consecutive day, today. In capital Kyiv, the Kyiv City Administration today claimed that 222 people, including 4 children had died due to Russian aggression since the start of the war. 889 persons got wounded in the capital and 18 of them were children.

Kyiv’s mayor said today a residential block in Kyiv’s Podylsky district was shelled by Russian artillery fire in the morning, killing one person, and injuring 19 others. 6 buildings were damaged and among them, there were a school and a kindergarten. “Rescue efforts are ongoing, information is being updated,” Kyiv’s mayor said.

Novoye Vremya news company informed that Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchina was likely taken hostage by Russian FSB on March 15, 2022. Victoria was reporting from areas of intense fighting in the East and was last known to be travelling to Mariupol.

Russian occupying forces had also taken hostage the Secretary of the Novokakhovka City Council. His wife reported he had been held for 2 days in the local police station, occupied by the Russian military.

Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine stated that since the beginning of the war, “under the pretext of evacuation”, Russia was “forcibly relocating” Ukrainians from enemy-occupied territories of the Donetsk region. “These actions are a violation of the provisions of Art. 49 and 55 of the Geneva Convention,” the Prosecutor General said. 

Today, Russian artillery hit a college dormitory in Kharkiv. One person died, 11 were injured and rescue efforts were ongoing, according to the State Emergency Service.

Besides, Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, stated that in the village of Zavody (Kharkiv region), a family of four people was killed during the Russian shelling of a residential neighbourhood: a man, two women and an 11-year-old boy. Another woman was injured

Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchina was likely taken hostage by the Russian FSB on 15 March. Victoria was reporting from areas of intense fighting in the East and was last known to be travelling to Mariupol.