The Chinese side approached Ukraine with a request not to strike Vladivostok while a high-ranking Chinese delegation was there. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said this during a briefing on September 8, UNN reports.
"Such requests have been made before," Tykhyi said, commenting on information about Beijing’s request.
Details
According to him, the Chinese side approached Ukraine’s foreign ministry with a request not to strike the area where the Chinese delegation was scheduled to be.
"This is recognition of Ukraine’s agency. Especially if you look at where Ukraine is and where Vladivostok is," the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.
Context
This concerned the period of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, which took place on September 1–4. The Chinese delegation was headed by Ding Xuexiang, Vice Premier of the State Council of the PRC and a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. He was in Vladivostok from September 2–4.
On September 1, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that one of the "other world powers" had asked Ukraine to refrain from strikes in the direction of Vladivostok for a certain period. At the time, the head of state did not name the country but said that Ukraine would take the request into account.
Later, Japan’s Kyodo News agency, citing sources, reported that it was China that had made the request to Kyiv in connection with the presence of the Chinese delegation in Vladivostok.
According to Kyodo, Ukraine agreed to temporarily refrain from striking Vladivostok while the Chinese representatives were there.
At the same time, there is no public confirmation that Ukraine had planned a specific strike on Vladivostok during this period. The Chinese side has also not publicly explained the reasons for its request.
Recall
Last week, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump asked Ukraine to refrain from striking moscow, saint petersburg, and the northern regions of russia with long-range missiles and drones for several days.