'Welcome Active Role': Ukraine Urges China To Pursue Peace With Russia During Putin Visit

Last Updated:September 01, 2025, 22:15 IST

The appeal came as Putin attended the SCO summit in the Chinese city of Tianjin, alongside leaders from China, India, Iran, and other member states

News18

Ukraine on Monday called on China to take a more active role in helping bring peace to Ukraine, while strongly criticising the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) for failing to mention Russia’s ongoing war in its summit declaration.

The appeal came as Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the SCO summit in the Chinese city of Tianjin, alongside leaders from China, India, Iran, and other member states.

In a detailed statement, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said it had taken note of the outcomes of the SCO meeting and pointed out that the main summit document – the 20-page Tianjin Declaration – made no mention of Russia’s war against Ukraine.

“It is surprising that the largest war of aggression in Europe since World War II was not reflected in such an important, fundamental document," the statement said, noting that the declaration did refer to other conflicts, terrorist attacks, and global events.

‘Failure of Moscow’s diplomatic efforts’

Ukraine said this silence showed the “failure of Moscow’s diplomatic efforts" and revealed that the Kremlin had not succeeded in uniting SCO countries around its view of the war.

“It is obvious that Moscow has failed to bring the positions of the participating states on this issue to a common denominator that would suit the Russian Federation," the ministry said.

Ukraine warned that without a just end to Russia’s aggression, the world could not talk about sustainable development, global peace, or fair trade relations between regions.

The ministry also urged all peace-loving countries to follow international law and the UN Charter when “assessing Russian aggression against Ukraine".

Specifically addressing China, Ukraine said it would welcome a more active role from Beijing in ending the war.

“Given the significant geopolitical role of China, we would welcome Beijing’s more active role in bringing peace to Ukraine, based on respect for the UN Charter," the ministry stated.

Putin, meanwhile, used the SCO platform to blame the West for the war and defended Russia’s actions in Ukraine. He blamed the West for sparking the war, which has lasted over three years and caused tens of thousands of deaths.

Speaking in Tianjin, Putin claimed the 2013–14 pro-European protests in Kyiv, which removed a pro-Russian president from power, were in fact a coup supported by Western countries.

“This crisis was not triggered by Russia’s attack on Ukraine, but was a result of a coup in Ukraine, which was supported and provoked by the West," the Russian President noted.

Putin also pointed to the West’s efforts to bring Ukraine into NATO as a key reason for the conflict.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation includes China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Belarus. It is presented as a non-Western platform for cooperation and is seen as an alternative to traditional Western alliances.

(With inputs from agencies)

Ukraine

News world 'Welcome Active Role': Ukraine Urges China To Pursue Peace With Russia During Putin Visit

Read More