US Secretary Of State Rebuffs China – No Diplomatic Solution Without Total Russian Pullback

Is the Ukraine war meant to go on forever?  For NATO officials and the Biden Administration, it seems as if this is the intention.  Secretary of State Antony Blinken made statements directed specifically to China during a press conference on the 2022 Human Rights Report, citing President Xi’s recent four hour meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow and China’s calls for diplomacy.  Blinken, not surprisingly, rebuffed China’s proposal because it does not include a total retreat of Russian forces from the Donbas regions of Ukraine.  He went on to accuse China of giving “diplomatic cover” to Putin. 

.@SecBlinken on Chinese President Xi visit to Moscow: “The world should not be fooled by any tactical move by Russia supported by China, or any other country, to freeze the war on its own terms…” pic.twitter.com/vOWxBawsRz

— CSPAN (@cspan) March 20, 2023

Four areas making up Eastern Ukraine passed referendums to join Russia in September of last year, though NATO claims the votes were “rigged” in favor of the Kremlin.  Donbas citizens have been engaged in a rebellion against the Ukrainian government ever since the 2014 Maidan Revolution. 

NATO leadership continues to argue that peace talks with Russia would only be a stalling tactic and that Russia cannot be allowed to keep hold of Eastern Ukraine because of the “domino effect” – The belief that Russia intends to invade other nations if it succeeds in Ukraine.  There is no evidence so far to support this theory.     

With a Russian pullback highly unlikely and Ukraine with limited means to take back the Donbas, Blinken’s comments merely reaffirm what everyone already knew: NATO intends for the war to continue perpetually.  Take note that Blinken, like other Biden Administration officials, acts as if NATO is the arbiter of when and how diplomatic solutions might be pursued.  He does not suggest asking the Ukrainian people if they are open to China’s proposal.  This is because NATO, according to the evidence available, is in fact running the war.  Ukraine might be the ground on which the battles are fought, but the conflict is actually between the US, Europe and Russia.  

Given this reality, one has to wonder what will happen if Ukraine fails to generate any forward momentum, or if Russia engages in another offensive?  How long before the situation escalates?