DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) – Ukraine’s first lady told the World Economic Forum on Tuesday she would deliver a letter to China’s delegation setting out President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s proposals for ending Russia’s war against his country.
China, like Russia a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, is an important partner for Moscow and has refused to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In a speech urging delegates to do more to help end the war, Olena Zelenska said she planned to hand the letter to Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He – who spoke after her – for passing on to President Xi Jinping.
She said she also had letters for European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Swiss President Alain Berset.
“Today I will give the colleagues participating in this part (of the forum) ‘formula letters’ from the president of Ukraine,” she said in Ukrainian.
Urging her audience in the Swiss resort of Davos to make greater use of their influence to end the fighting, she said global cooperation was needed to prevent the collapse of the lives to which people across the world have become accustomed.
“Unity is what brings peace back,” she said.
Zelenska said the war had global ramifications which could get worse if Ukraine was defeated.
“How does the world expect to reach climate neutrality, if it can’t even stop the burning down of whole Ukrainian cities. This is what Russia does with its artillery, missiles, Iranian drones,” she said.
“You all know that Russian aggression was never intended to stop at Ukrainian borders. This war can move forward and ignite wider crises if Ukraine loses.”
Zelenskiy first presented his proposed 10-point peace plan – which calls for the total withdrawal of Moscow’s troops from Ukraine and a special war crimes tribunal for Russia – while speaking to the Group of 20 major economies in November.
He and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba have over the last two months talked up Ukraine’s diplomatic strategy of building relations with countries in Asia and Africa, as Kyiv tries to broaden its coalition against Russia.
(Reporting by Max Hunder, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
