Diplomatic Briefing
Your exclusive news aggregator handpicked daily!Archive for March 19, 2023
Newsline: China takes ‘diplomatic dance’ to isolated Russia
Xi Jinping walks a diplomatic tightrope as he heads to Moscow, seeking to present China as a global peacemaker while strengthening ties with his closest ally, President Vladimir Putin, who faces criminal charges over his Ukraine war. Leaving on Monday for his first trip overseas since securing a third term as president, Xi will seek to burnish Beijing’s diplomatic clout after it brokered a surprise detente between Saudi Arabia and Iran last week, even as he cements his “no limits” partnership with the increasingly isolated Putin. China’s top trade partners are the United States and the European Union – among the fiercest critics of Russia’s war in Ukraine, which Moscow calls a “special military operation”. (https://neuters.de/world/touting-friendship-peace-chinas-xi-takes-diplomatic-dance-isolated-russia-2023-03-18/) China published a proposal last month to end the conflict, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives and forced millions to flee. It received a lukewarm welcome in Kyiv and Moscow, although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he would be open to talks with Xi, which some media reports say could follow the Chinese leader’s Russia trip. The U.S. and its Western allies are deeply sceptical of China’s motives, noting Beijing has refused to condemn Russia and provided it with an economic lifeline as other countries heap sanctions on Moscow.
Newsline: Iran proposes locations to Saudi Arabia for foreign minister meeting
The Iranian government has proposed to Saudi Arabia three locations for a meeting at foreign minister level, Iran’s foreign minister said on Sunday, citing the latest messages with Riyadh since the countries agreed to re-establish ties. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told a news conference in Tehran his country had agreed to such a meeting, although he did not list the three locations or say when such a meeting might take place. Amirabdollahian also said Tehran was ready for the mutual reopening of embassies. (https://neuters.de/world/middle-east/iran-proposes-locations-saudi-arabia-fm-meeting-2023-03-19/) Iran and Saudi Arabia, the region’s Shi’ite Muslim and Sunni powers, agreed on March 10 to re-establish relations and re-open embassies within two months after years of hostility. The deal, brokered by China, was announced after four days of previously undisclosed talks in Beijing between top security officials from the two rival Middle Eastern powers. Saudi Arabia cut ties with Iran in 2016 after its embassy in Tehran was stormed during a dispute between the two countries over Riyadh’s execution of a Shi’ite Muslim cleric.
Newsline: Serbia, Kosovo agree on EU-backed diplomatic deal
Kosovo and Serbia have reached an agreement on implementing a European Union-backed deal to normalise ties, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said late on Saturday, though the two leaders said disagreements remain. (https://neuters.de/world/europe/kosovo-serbia-leaders-arrive-eu-backed-talks-deal-normalise-ties-2023-03-18/) Kosovo and Serbia have been in EU-backed talks for nearly 10 years since Kosovo declared independence in 2008, almost a decade after war ended Serbian rule. But Serbia still regards Kosovo as a breakaway province and flare-ups between the Balkan neighbours have stoked fears of a return to conflict. The agreement on Saturday came after 12-hour talks between Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and EU officials on implementing the deal, which both sides had agreed to in Brussels last month. The two leaders held separate meetings with Borrell before a three-way session in North Macedonia.
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