The White House lauded the phone call Wednesday between Ukrainian head of state Volodymyr Zelensky and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to discuss possibilities for ending the war between Russia and Ukraine.
“We welcome the news that there was a phone call between President Xi and President Zelensky. We think that’s a good thing,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
“Now, whether that’s going to lead to some sort of meaningful peace movement or plan or proposal, I just don’t think we know that right now,” Kirby said.
“We have long said we want this war to end,” he said, adding that it could end “immediately” if Russia would pull its troops out of Ukraine.
“If there’s going to be a negotiated peace, it’s got to (be) when President Zelensky is ready for it … where he can do it from a position of strength,” Kirby said.
“We certainly would welcome any effort to arrive at a just peace, as long as that peace could be just, could be sustainable, and could be credible,” said Kirby.
“And in our view, it’s not going to be sustainable or credible unless the Ukrainians and President Zelensky personally is invested in it and supportive of it,” he said.
