Kyiv is still open to cooperation with Beijing, a Ukrainian presidential adviser told Newsweek on condition of anonymity.

"We have to keep the door open for China," he said, noting that the Ukrainian president has said so repeatedly since he was elected in 2019. Last year, for example, Zelenskiy spoke out against growing skepticism about China in the United States when he said he did not see Beijing as a geopolitical threat.

According to the adviser, Kyiv has two priorities: "Helping us push Russia out and creating a partnership."

"China is a very reliable trade partner for us. Of course, we are trying to establish a new relationship between our leaders."

He said Kyiv realizes if China starts supplying ammunition to Russian troops, it would be terrible, but 'we don't believe it's possible.' He suggested that Beijing "would not want to be too closely associated with Putin's protracted war."

The main reason for Ukraine's claims is Beijing's apparent refusal to organize high-level talks between Zelenskiy and President Xi Jinping. Ukraine and China celebrated three decades of formal diplomatic relations in 2022, but the two leaders have not spoken for more than a year.