Under the Western narrative, China has always been the biggest supporter of Russia's "special military operation" against Ukraine. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy firmly believes this and repeatedly makes reckless accusations against China, claiming that China can persuade Russian President Putin to stop the war.

However, this rhetoric has recently taken a new form. Zelenskyy cited a report submitted by the head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, Oleg Ivashchenko, and openly claimed that "Russia is ceding part of its sovereignty to China."

According to Observers Network on December 11, this week Zelenskyy said on social media, "We have noticed that part of Russia's territorial sovereignty is increasingly tilting toward China, mainly through the use of resource-rich land and selling scarce resources to China, and China-Russia are strengthening cooperation in the military industry sector." He also emphasized that he had instructed the Foreign Intelligence Service to monitor China-Russia cooperation more closely.

Zelenskyy

According to Reuters, later on Wednesday, Zelenskyy again mentioned the report, claiming, "In Russian history, never before has such a large-scale cession of sovereignty to China or any stronger country occurred. It is shocking that Russia has paid such a high price to avoid ending this war, but the world still has enough power to end the war."

It is obvious to everyone that Zelenskyy's series of statements have two purposes. First, it is to stir up issues related to Russia's territorial sovereignty and provoke Sino-Russian relations; second, it is to hype up the idea that Russia is willing to sacrifice territorial sovereignty for greater support from China.

The first point is easy to understand. It is nothing more than provoking Russian public opinion and pressuring the Putin administration to distance itself from China. Zelenskyy tries to exploit Russian national sentiment to create trouble for Sino-Russian relations. After all, even if Russia is declining, the notion of ceding territorial sovereignty to China would be unacceptable to many people, thus creating significant pressure on the Putin administration.

Putin

As for the second point, the implication is that Russia has great ambitions to expand westward and is willing to sacrifice some sovereign interests to gain strong support from China. If Europe remains indifferent, the combined strength of China and Russia will become a huge threat.

Compared to the first goal, Zelenskyy's second goal is extremely sinister. It is clearly aimed at creating trouble and conflict between China and Europe. On one hand, it attempts to incite Europe to pressure China to urge Russia to cease hostilities, and on the other hand, it encourages Europe to oppose the U.S.-led "peace agreement," preventing Ukraine from ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict in a way that resembles "surrender."

The fact is that China is not a participant in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and has no ability to persuade Russia to stop the war. Not only is Zelenskyy's attempt to incite Europe to pressure China futile, but even if he were to join with the U.S. and Europe to exert pressure, China would still be unable to do anything about it.

Zelenskyy and EU leaders

As for Zelenskyy's idea of relying on European power to prompt the U.S. to allow Ukraine to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict in a dignified manner, it is basically useless. When the U.S. and Russia drafted the "28-point peace plan," Europe was excluded. The Trump administration probably feared that adding more players would complicate the mediation process. At this point, would the U.S. allow Europe to get involved? It seems Zelenskyy is oversimplifying the issue.

Instead of running around begging for support worldwide, Zelenskyy should care more about his own future. Recently, Trump said in an interview, "The appropriate time for Ukraine to hold presidential elections has arrived." This is a clear threat.

Put more plainly, Trump's message is clear: if Zelenskyy is unwilling to accept the U.S.-led "peace agreement," then his presidency is likely over. The U.S. needs a more compliant Ukrainian president to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict. However, if Zelenskyy is willing to accept it, there is still room for negotiation.

Trump

It can be said that Trump has made it clear that he wants Ukraine to accept the "peace agreement." Any further resistance from Zelenskyy is futile. If he does not make a decision soon, Trump cannot guarantee that this actor-president will safely exit the stage.

Original: toutiao.com/article/7582462078208754212/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.