Zelensky never met Xi due to China's refusal, expert says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has never met Chinese leader Xi Jinping, according to Vita Holod, a board member of the Ukrainian Association of China Studies, who cited Chinese refusal as the reason in a Radio NV interview. Holod said Ukrainian diplomats have repeatedly pushed for a meeting, but China has blocked it, with only one phone call occurring in April 2023. She suggested Xi may want to mediate only when conditions favor a signed document, while noting China's shuttle diplomacy by Li Hui has failed. Xi has met Russian President Vladimir Putin around 50 times, while no signals of a bilateral meeting with Zelensky have emerged since 2019. On September 23, Zelensky urged Trump to press Xi to approach Putin about ending the war.