Chinese President Xi: "Russia's Role in Security Council Must Not Be Removed"…Meeting with Russian Foreign Minister

The King and the Chinese Foreign Minister
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Bu Aeri] Wang Yi, China's Foreign Minister, argued that Russia should not be deprived of its important role at the United Nations.

According to TASS and other agencies, Wang, who is visiting New York to attend the UN General Assembly, made the remarks on the 21st (local time) during a separate bilateral meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Wang stated, "The UN is in the United States, but the UN itself belongs to all of us," adding, "Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and must continue to play an important role within the UN. No one should deprive Russia of these rights."

He continued, "The COVID-19 pandemic has not yet passed, and serious changes are occurring on the international stage," and said, "In the current situation, the strengthening of cooperation and coordination between China and Russia, the joint response of the two countries to common challenges, and their proposals on international security are playing an important role."

On the 22nd, the Russian Foreign Ministry introduced the results of the Russia-China foreign ministers' meeting through a press release, stating that "bilateral as well as international and regional issues were discussed," mentioning "Ukraine, Afghanistan, the situation on the Korean Peninsula, and compliance with the nuclear non-proliferation regime."

The Foreign Ministry particularly emphasized that "both sides strongly condemned the United States' destructive foreign policy line, including provocative activities in the Taiwan Strait."

It added, "Both sides noted the high efficiency of mutual cooperation on various UN platforms and agreed to gradually strengthen substantive cooperation and diplomatic coordination in the context of agreements between the two heads of state."

Wang's remarks at the Russia-China foreign ministers' meeting are interpreted as a rebuttal to calls from Germany, Japan, and Ukraine at this UN General Assembly urging Russia's expulsion from the Security Council as a permanent member.

On the 20th, during the general debate of the UN General Assembly, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida hinted at the idea of expelling Russia from the Security Council and expressed their countries' willingness to fill the vacancy, according to Kyodo News and others.

Germany and Japan, along with India and Brazil, formed the "G4" in 2004, advocating for UN reforms including permanent membership on the Security Council.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a virtual speech at the UN General Assembly on the 21st, urged that "if an aggressor is a decision-maker in an international organization, they need to be isolated from it," calling for the removal of Russia's veto power in the Security Council.

The Security Council consists of five permanent members?the United States, the United Kingdom, France, China, and Russia?and ten non-permanent members that rotate every two years.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.