Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told world leaders at a Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland that any"credible process" needed Russia's involvement, but he did not describe it as a"clown show" and"meaningless" as Chinese social media posts claimed. Saudi Arabia was among several countries that maintain close ties with Moscow that did not endorse a joint communique issued at the summit after Russia was not invited.
The simplified Chinese post, viewed more than 190,000 times, read,"The foreign minister of Saudi Arabia said straight out in front of everyone at the 'peace summit' in Switzerland: 'This is a clown show, and without Russia's participation, this show is meaningless.
China steered clear of the summit. It presents itself as a neutral party in the Ukraine war, and says it is not sending lethal assistance to either side, unlike the United States and other Western nations.Prince Faisal begins speaking at the UATV video's 1:02:22 mark, but the Screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading posts and the UATV's live-streamed footage
He started by thanking Switzerland for inviting Saudi Arabia to the summit before saying the Gulf kingdom's participation was"in line with its long tradition as mediators and peacemakers".