Ukraine crisis splits China's top 7 leaders

 

Ukraine crisis splits China's top 7 leaders

For around a week in February, China's top leadership disappeared from the news cycle. The seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee were considering every angle of the then-simmering Ukrainian situation.

The marathon discussions concluded, and the current stance of standing with Russian President Vladimir Putin was decided upon.

But as Putin kept ratcheting up tensions, including a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, cracks appeared in the leadership.

One such signal was a comment by U.N. Ambassador Zhang Jun, who said at the General Assembly that: "The situation has evolved to a point which China does not wish to see."

Is there a possibility that China will change course? Yes, if the Politburo Standing Committee settles the matter by vote. If the standing committee were to vote to abandon a policy that President Xi Jinping advocates, it would deal him a political defeat.

It also would bring back elements of "collective leadership" to China, something Xi has been trying to dismantle since coming to power.