China's Xi faces questions on Ukraine

There are fears that Beijing may fail elsewhere in the world when it comes to winning credibility.

During two days of talks in Moscow, Xi pushed forward positions on Ukraine after China announced the re-establishing of ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia rivals in a region where the United States has been the main diplomatic powerbroker for decades.

The United States has been sceptical of China's diplomatic offensive, believing that its proposed ceasefire would only give Russia time to regroup forces that Ukrainians have been succeeding in pushing back for more than a year.

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, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

US officials and experts say that China's diplomacy is not so much about ending the war as an attempt to change the narrative.

Robert Daly, director of the Kissinger Institute in China, said Xi would like to be seen and taken seriously as a peacemaker.

He's more interested in that right now than doing specific things to achieve peace in Ukraine. This is mostly about messaging. The United States has been successful in convincing Western allies to see China as a global threat, a perception that has grown in Europe after the US states that Beijing is considering supplying weapons to Russia.

Daly doubted that China would give major military support unless it sees a serious threat to President Vladimir Putin, Xi's biggest ally in confronting the United States.