The Joe Biden administration appears to be weighing whether to work with China to seek a negotiated settlement to the war in Ukraine after U.S. officials predict Ukraine will win its long-planned offensive..

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken publicly outlined the administration's views in an interview with the Washington Post on Wednesday.. His comments echo what officials have spoken privately in recent days about potential US-China cooperation to end the bloody war..

American journalist and writer David Ignatius writes about this in an article for the Washington Post.. A prerequisite for any diplomatic effort will be Ukrainian victories on the battlefield, which could put Kyiv in a stronger negotiating position.. Asked about the prospects of the Ukrainian army in the expected counter-offensive, Blinken said: “I am confident that they will succeed and retake most of their territory, and I think it is also important to note that for Russia this is already a strategic defeat.”.

Ignatius writes that he asked Blinken about cooperation with China in achieving a stable result in Ukraine. To this, the Secretary of State gave a surprisingly candid answer: “In principle, there is nothing wrong with this if we have a country: China or any other countries with significant influence, ready to strive for a just and lasting peace.. We would welcome this and it is certainly possible that China will play a role in this effort.. And that could be very helpful."

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Blinken noted that there are several positive points in the 12-point peace plan that China released in February.. Chinese proposals include respect for the " The Chinese plan also provides for measures "

Ukraine wants China to play the role of mediator. President Volodymyr Zelensky had his first conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping last week.. Later, the Ukrainian president said that they discussed how to achieve a " The Chinese side stressed that "

Blinken said on Wednesday that the Xi Jinping-Zelensky talk is “a positive thing as it is vital that China and other countries seeking to promote peace hear the victim, not just the aggressor.”.

Ignatius writes that Russia is not happy with China's peacekeeping efforts. Several American officials told the journalist about this.. But Moscow, subordinated to Beijing economically and militarily, cannot resist the desires of China. This is one reason administration officials are intrigued by China's peace efforts.. They believe that Beijing can prevent Russia from trying to restart the war later - after a pause..

“The only possibility of stability is China as a guarantor,” an unnamed official told Ignatius..

Discussing any long-term peace effort, Blinken said that " It is impossible to ratify what Russia did, namely, the seizure of a significant part of the territory of Ukraine. And the peace must be strong in the sense that we don’t want everything to end up with Russia being able to just rest, rearm and attack again in six months or a year.”.

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“In principle, countries, especially those with significant influence such as China, if they are willing to play a positive role in trying to bring peace, that would be good.. But it all starts with Vladimir Putin having to make this fundamental decision.. We haven't seen it yet,"

Ignatius writes that the Secretary of State's public expression of interest in a possible mediating role for China is part of a broader effort to define what he likes to call a " Blinken also said he was hopeful that his trip to China, which had been postponed after the February spy balloon incident, could go through.. Other US diplomatic contacts with China are also working.

Administration officials are still discussing the possibility that a parallel US-China peace effort will cement China's wider role in Europe..

And this at a time when the US is trying to convince European allies not to enter into "

But when even Zelenskiy, who depends on US military assistance for survival, welcomes contacts with Xi Jinping, excluding China from the process may be unrealistic..

The best strategy the administration seems to be leaning towards is acknowledging Beijing's role but insisting it must act responsibly to be treated like a big state.. China could start by encouraging a just peace in Ukraine.