The 28-point Ukraine peace plan and the Putin-Li meeting

A quick update due to the news cycle. Former Ambassador Daniel Fried published an analysis with Just Security on the proposed 28-point “peace plan” for Ukraine. It’s worth your time, especially if you’re a European policymaker. Earlier this week, Premier Li Qiang met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and others in Moscow. PRC authoritative readouts + my initial reactions below.

Li-Putin meeting

Li Qiang Meets with Russian President Putin – People’s Daily [Chinese-language, machine-translated]

Xinhua News Agency, Moscow, November 18 (Reporters Ding Deqi and Zhang Chaoqun) On the afternoon of November 18, local time, Premier Li Qiang of the State Council met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow.

Li Qiang first conveyed President Xi Jinping’s cordial greetings and best wishes to President Putin. Li Qiang stated that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination in the new era has maintained a high level of operation. This year, President Xi Jinping and President Putin have met twice, charting the course for the further development of China-Russia relations. Facing a complex and volatile international situation, China is willing to work with Russia to uphold the original aspiration of generational friendship, strengthen the alignment of development strategies, deepen cooperation in various fields, achieve more practical results, and better serve the development and revitalization of both countries.

Li Qiang pointed out that China’s determination and position on developing mutually beneficial cooperation with Russia are consistent. China is willing to further enhance the resilience of cooperation with Russia and consolidate and maintain the steady development momentum of bilateral cooperation. The two sides should jointly organize the new China-Russia national-level theme year, make good use of people-friendly policies such as visa-free travel, promote greater mutual understanding and affinity between the two peoples, and solidify the foundation of people-to-people friendship in bilateral relations. China is willing to continue to work closely with Russia to implement the outcomes of the SCO Tianjin Summit, promote the “Shanghai Spirit,” deepen unity and cooperation, create a model for implementing global governance initiatives, promote the high-quality development of the SCO, and make greater contributions to regional and world peace and development.

Putin asked Li Qiang to convey his cordial greetings and best wishes to President Xi Jinping, congratulated the successful convening of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, and ...