MFA confirms China asked Ukraine not to target Vladivostok during visit by senior Chinese officials

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhiy Tykhy confirmed that Kyiv recently received a request from Beijing asking that it refrain from striking the part of Russian territory where a high-level Chinese delegation was staying. According to an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent, he made this statement during a briefing on Tuesday in Kyiv. "Regarding China and the request not to strike Vladivostok: We don't usually comment on such matters publicly, to be honest. But since you've already asked: I can confirm that the Chinese side did indeed officially approach the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a request not to strike the part of the Russian Federation's territory where the high-level Chinese delegation will be staying. "Such a request was made," Tykhy said in response to a question from Interfax-Ukraine. According to the spokesperson, the Ukrainian side took note of this request. However, he noted that this is not the first time such requests have been made. "Similar requests have been made in the past when Chinese officials, including high-ranking ones, were on the territory of the Russian Federation," Tykhy said. The Foreign Ministry spokesperson considers this to be "recognition of Ukraine's statehood," urging people to "look at a map to see where Vladivostok is located." Earlier, Kyodo News, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported that China had asked Ukraine not to strike Vladivostok while Chinese Vice Premier and Xi Jinping's ally Ding Xuexiang was there. According to the sources, Kyiv agreed not to attack the city.