SOURCE: AFI
In a recent interview with DW, Chinese military expert and retired Senior Colonel Zhou Bo outlined a potential pathway for China and India to play significant roles in resolving the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Speaking on February 17, 2025, Zhou suggested that both nations could contribute in three key areas: providing a collective security guarantee to Ukraine, participating in peacemaking efforts, and ensuring that any peacekeeping mission avoids escalating tensions with Russia.
Zhou Bo emphasized that China and India, as major global powers outside the NATO framework, could collaborate to offer a collective security guarantee to Ukraine. This role would involve assuring both Kyiv and Moscow that any ceasefire or peace agreement would be backed by credible measures to prevent future aggression. According to Zhou, such a guarantee could help rebuild trust between the conflicting parties, providing a buffer against renewed hostilities without escalating tensions with Russia.
In his interview, Zhou argued that China and India’s neutrality in the conflict—neither country has supplied weapons to either side—makes them uniquely positioned to mediate and ensure stability. He noted that a security guarantee from non-NATO nations could address Russia’s concerns about Western encroachment while meeting Ukraine’s need for protection. This proposal aligns with China’s broader Global Security Initiative (GSI), which advocates for a multipolar world order and respect for all countries’ sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Zhou also highlighted China as one of the best options for sending peacemaking troops to Ukraine, particularly if a ceasefire is negotiated. He argued that Chinese forces, working alongside other non-NATO countries like India, could help monitor any peace agreement, ensure compliance, and stabilize regions affected by the conflict. This role, he suggested, would differ from traditional peacekeeping, focusing instead on facilitating dialogue and preventing small-scale clashes from reigniting full-scale war.
In the interview, Zhou stressed that China’s participation would be contingent on avoiding any perception of alignment with NATO or Western powers. He pointed out that Beijing has consistently positioned itself as a neutral party, refusing to condemn Russia’s invasion outright while calling for dialogue and de-escalation. This stance, he argued, gives China credibility as a potential peacemaker, especially in contrast to Western nations, which Russia views with suspicion.
One of Zhou’s most striking points was his dismissal of European troops as an unrealistic option for Ukraine. He warned that Russia would interpret any deployment of European forces—whether from NATO members or neutral European countries—as a direct extension of NATO’s influence, undermining any chance of peace. This perspective echoes China’s broader criticism of NATO expansion, which it sees as a destabilizing factor in both Europe and Asia.
Zhou’s argument is rooted in Russia’s historical grievances, particularly its opposition to NATO’s eastward expansion since the Cold War. He suggested that Moscow would view European troops, even under a UN mandate, as a provocation, potentially escalating the conflict rather than resolving it. In contrast, he argued that non-NATO powers like China and India could bridge the gap, offering a neutral presence that both sides might accept.
This stance has resonated on social media, with some posts on X supporting Zhou’s logic as a realistic assessment of Russian sensitivities. Others, however, questioned whether China’s close ties with Russia could undermine its neutrality, pointing to Beijing’s economic support for Moscow amid Western sanctions. Despite these concerns, Zhou’s proposal highlights a key challenge in any peacekeeping effort: balancing the interests of all parties while avoiding escalation.
Zhou Bo, a senior fellow at Tsinghua University’s Center for International Security and Strategy, is a well-known voice in Chinese strategic circles, having served as a senior colonel in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) until his retirement in 2019. His comments to DW build on his previous analyses, where he has often advocated for China to play a larger role in global security while criticizing Western military alliances. His interview comes at a time when the Ukraine war, now in its third year, shows no clear path to resolution, with both sides suffering heavy losses and international fatigue growing.
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