It was at a meeting between China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi and the EU's Foreign Minister Kaja Kallas in Brussels this week that Beijing's stance is said to have been clarified, according to reports from among others CNN. The meeting is described as a four-hour marathon, when Wang is said to have given Kallas a "history lesson", according to South China Morning Post.
Participating EU officials say they are surprised by Wang's frankness about the war in Ukraine. It confirms what many in Brussels have suspected, namely that Beijing prefers a prolonged war despite the country officially saying it is neutral.
To put an end to the war in Ukraine was one of US President Donald Trump's most prominent election promises. During the spring, the White House has made repeated attempts to get negotiations and a ceasefire, however without result. In parallel, Trump has threatened China with high tariffs but at the end of June an agreement was reached on a framework for trade between China and the US.
The next scheduled summit between the EU and China is expected to be held on July 24 in Beijing.
