Beijing strongly rejected on Monday US claims that China is considering arming Russia in the war against Ukraine, as it reiterated its call for dialogue to end the conflict.
On Sunday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Beijing was now “considering providing lethal support” to Moscow ranging from “munitions to its own weapons”.
“It is the United States and not China that is endlessly sending weapons to the battlefield,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Friday, when asked about the US claims.
“We urge the United States to seriously reflect on its own actions, and do more to ease the situation, promote peace and dialogue, and stop misrepresentation and spreading false information,” Wang told a regular briefing.
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Moscow’s attack on Ukraine is a sensitive issue for Beijing, which seeks to maintain a neutral position while offering diplomatic support to Russia’s strategic ally.
“It is clear to the international community that it is calling for dialogue and fighting for peace, and that is adding fuel to the fire and encouraging the opposition,” Wang added, reiterating the call for support for the Chinese proposal to end the war.
China’s proposal
On Saturday, China said it would publish a proposal this week to find a “political solution” to the Ukraine crisis, with Beijing’s top diplomat telling a conference that the country was “on the side of dialogue”.
Wang Yi told the Munich Security Conference that China opposes attacks on nuclear power plants, opposes the use of biochemical weapons and is willing to cooperate with “all parties”.
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Later on Monday, the EU’s foreign policy chief warned China not to supply weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine.
Josep Borrell said that he told Wang Yi that “for us, this will be a red line in our relationship. He told us that he will not do it, he has no plans to do it. But we will remain vigilant”.
– Shown the spy balloon –
Blinken’s accusations come as relations between China and the United States are strained after Washington shot down what it said was a Chinese spy balloon earlier this month.
The United States has repeatedly warned China not to give Russia support for its war in Ukraine, which is approaching its anniversary.
Appearing Sunday on ABC, Blinken said that US President Joe Biden has warned his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, since last March not to send weapons to Russia.
Since then, “China has been careful not to cross that line, including by withholding the sale of lethal weapons systems for use on the battlefield”, according to a US administration source familiar with the matter.
In Munich, Blinken and Wang Yi clash over Washington shooting down Chinese balloons in its airspace.
During the meeting, Blinken “spoke directly about the unacceptable violation of US sovereignty and international law by (China’s) high-altitude surveillance balloons in US territorial airspace”, State Department spokesman Ned Price said.
He also warned Wang “about the implications and consequences if China provides material support to Russia or assistance with systemic sanctions evasion”, Price said.
Wang Yi told Blinken that his country’s relationship had been damaged by Washington’s reaction to the balloon, which China has repeatedly described as a civilian job for deviant weather research.
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Wang Yi “explained China’s solemn position on the so-called airship incident”, and “urged the US side to change course, acknowledge and repair the damage caused by excessive use of force in China-US relations”, Xinhua news agency. reported.
Speaking on Saturday at a meeting of world leaders in Munich, the diplomat condemned the US reaction to the balloon as “hysterical and absurd”.