Ukraine knows it needs to engage China in order to advance its plans for, what it calls, a "just and lasting peace" to end the war.
A big step towards getting China involved in a future peace summit took place yesterday in Guangzhou, where Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi held talks.
Mr Kuleba is the highest ranking Ukrainian official to travel to China since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine 29 months ago.
China has tried to portray itself as a neutral player in the conflict, proposing a vague six-point peace plan along with Brazil in May.
But, in truth, China has been Russia’s biggest ally.
Both countries agreed to a "no limits" partnership just days before Russia invaded Ukraine.
Since the start of the war, China has not condemned Russia's invasion and, instead, has developed closer economic ties with Russia. Trade between the two countries reached a record $240bn (€221bn) last year.
However, Russia needs China more than China needs Russia. Whereas Russia is China's sixth largest trade partner, China is Russia's largest.
China is also the largest importer of Russian crude oil, providing much needed revenue for the Kremlin's war economy.
More Russian firms are also now using the yuan to pay for goods on foreign markets too.
For all of these reasons, China's views matter in Moscow and its role in bringing about any change in Russia’s war policy cannot be underestimated.
Last month’s 'summit on peace', held in Switzerland at Ukraine’s request, was a success for Kyiv in so far as it received the backing of the west, most African and South American countries, and key Asian economies such as Japan and South Korea.
But China’s absence from the summit meant that a big part of the puzzle was missing.
India, Brazil and South Africa - the other big BRICS countries, an association of developing economies that includes China and Russia - also did not sign the joint declaration at the end of the summit in Switzerland.
By not engaging China, Ukraine stands a lesser chance of getting those other big developing economies to back its peace proposal, which, at its core, hinges on regaining one-fifth of its national territory, currently occupied by Russian forces.
Ukraine wants to hold a second peace summit by the end of this year and has said that it wants Russia to take part. But it needs China at that table.
Without pressure from Beijing, the Kremlin is unlikely to soften its demands in order to end the war.
Currently, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s price to end his country’s war on Ukraine is exorbitant: the annexation of four eastern Ukrainian provinces (redrawing Ukraine’s internationally-recognised borders from 1991) and a commitment from Ukraine to not join NATO.
Mr Kuleba and Mr Yi were reported to have held a three-hour talk yesterday morning, which is quite long for a bilateral meeting.
"I am convinced that a just peace in Ukraine is in China's strategic interests, and China's role as a global force for peace is important," read a statement by Mr Kuleba, issued by Ukraine's ministry of foreign affairs after the meeting.
That suggests Ukraine is open to China playing a key role at a second summit, if it so wishes.
