Chinese Foreign Affairs spokesman Zhao Lijian had multiple opportunities to respond to questions about China’s views on the Ukraine situation during the March 17 press conference of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
When asked to comment on claims attributed to Britain’s intelligence service that only Xi Jinping could cause Putin to end the war, Zhao responded that “It takes the one who started the issue to resolve it. I want to stress that those who caused the Ukraine crisis should reflect on the roles they have played … instead of shifting the blame to others.”
He elaborated in a later response: “International media lately mentioned many times that George Kennan, former U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union, suggested to the U.S. government in the 1990s that expanding NATO up to Russia’s borders would be the most fateful error of American policy.… The U.S. decision on NATO’s eastward expansion is directly linked to the Ukraine crisis now. I read a report the other day that Tulsi Gabbard, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, said the crisis could have been ended and the war easily avoided if the U.S. had simply promised not to accept Ukraine’s becoming a member of NATO. But they chose not to do so. … The key to solving the Ukraine crisis is in the hands of the US and NATO.” [emphasis added]
