Might mix too China in the Ukraine War with?
The United States is alarmed: the communist regime is said to have signaled its willingness to provide Russia with military assistance in attacking Ukraine.
The Financial Times reports, citing officials who have access to US State Department diplomatic communications to allies in Europe and Asia.
The news doesn’t say whether China has just signaled that it will help Russia in the future, or whether the country has already started to do so, according to the report. It is also unclear at what point in the war Beijing would be open to such help.
A senior US Defense Department official said it was “monitoring the situation very, very closely.” “Should China decide to provide material support to Russia in this war, there will likely be consequences for China,” he said.
The Financial Times reported on Sunday that Russia had asked China for support – with arms AND economically – to limit the impact of the sanctions.
The Chinese embassy in the US then stated that it was not aware of a Russian request or a positive Chinese response to Moscow. Russia also denied having made a request to China on Monday.
US officials are convinced: China’s regime is publicly calling for a diplomatic solution to the war, but behind the scenes it is trying to help Russia.
Beijing has so far neither openly supported nor condemned the invasion of the troops of Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin (69).
The regime of Xi Jingping (68) expressed its “regret” for the quite important trading partner Ukraine and expressed concern for civilian casualties. At the same time, however, Beijing reiterated its criticism of the USA, the eastward expansion of NATO and its understanding of Russian “security concerns”.
China’s worst-case scenario: Putin toppled
Putin only traveled to Beijing for the opening of the Winter Olympics in February – he and Xi pledged support in their struggle with the United States and NATO.
But the large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine and the tough sanctions imposed by the West seem to be straining relations – and surprising Beijing. “You could see the confusion in the first statements,” said Sergey Radchenko, a professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
“Outwardly she is (the Chinese government, editor’s note) neutral, but in reality she is on the side of Russia,” said Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at London’s School of Oriental and African Studies.
Because the worst-case scenario for Beijing would be if sanctions or a Russian military failure led to an uprising and the overthrow of Putin – and possibly a pro-Western government in Moscow.
“I doubt Xi wants to see the war in Ukraine escalate any further,” Tsang said. “Instead, he wants Putin to get what he wants without much collateral damage.”