By Athena Papakosta

Emmanuel Macron’s three-day visit to China ends today, but the French president failed to change Beijing’s stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The Chinese leader once again said all sides have “reasonable security concerns” and called on them to resume peace talks to find a political solution without, however, elaborating on how Beijing might use its influence to help bring an end to the war in Ukraine.

For Xi, calling on the international community to “refrain from any action that would lead to further aggravation of the crisis” was the furthest he could go.

And this is because he himself sees China as a possible mediator but the West, not. Instead, it places him on the side of those who support Moscow. After all, the Chinese president has not condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he has visited the Russian capital where he met with President Putin, he has not spoken to Zelensky, and the question remains whether or not he will supply Russia with weapons.

Already Xi Jinping has heard his French counterpart urging him to convince Russia by bringing it back to the path of reason. At the same time, he was under pressure not to offer anything to Moscow that could serve it in its war in Ukraine.

However, the Chinese leader did not condemn the Russian invasion even today. Instead, according to a French diplomat who was present at the negotiations, he said he would call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky when the time was right.

“I know I can count on you,” said Emmanuel Macron, with the French side characterizing the discussions between the leaders as honest and constructive, and China as friendly and in-depth.