In a new interview, President Biden stated that a Chinese-brokered peace proposal between Russia and Ukraine is “not rational,” noting that the suggested plan would only benefit Moscow.
David Muir asked Biden about the Chinese peace initiative in an interview published Friday, ABC News, which Russian President Vladimir Putin applauded last week.
“I think you answered the question, Putin’s applauding it, so how could it be any good? I’m not being facetious. I’m being deadly earnest,” Biden told Muir. “I’ve seen nothing in the plan that would indicate that there is something that would be beneficial to anyone other than Russia if the Chinese plan were followed.”
“It’s the idea that China is going to be negotiating the outcome of a war that’s a totally unjust war for Ukraine is just not rational,” he continued.
On Thursday, China called for a cease-fire in the Ukraine-Russia conflict and proposed a 12-point peace plan. The plan calls for the end of hostilities, the restart of peace talks, and the resolution of the humanitarian catastrophe caused by the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed some receptivity to China’s idea, stating that Beijing discussing Ukraine “was not bad” at a news conference on Friday, The Associated Press reported. He also stated that, while he disagrees with some of the plan’s objectives, he wants to meet with China’s President Xi Jinping.
Earlier this month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that China is “strongly considering” delivering Russia “lethal assistance” in its conflict with Ukraine. This week, the Pentagon warned China that it would suffer “consequences” if it sent arms to Moscow.
Biden paid a surprise visit to Ukraine last week to mark the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion. Obama then addressed remarks in Poland, saying that the United States and other Western allies would continue to help Ukraine until the war ended.