China may give Russia weapons for Ukraine war, warns US

• China is considering sending Russia arms and ammunition for the conflict in Ukraine.
• Prompting Antony Blinken to warn that this would have “severe ramifications” for China.
• China has “neither stood by quietly nor thrown fuel on the fire” for the Ukraine crisis.

China is considering sending Russia arms and ammunition for the conflict in Ukraine, according to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

According to Mr. Blinken, that Chinese businesses are already giving Russia “non-lethal support” and that Beijing may do so in the future.

He warned that this escalation would have “severe ramifications” for China.

China has refuted claims that Russia has asked for military hardware.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has not immediately denounced Russia’s invasion but has called for peace and sought to maintain neutrality.

After meeting Wang Yi, China’s senior diplomat, on Saturday at the Munich Security Conference, Mr. Blinken spoke with Media.

He said that during the meeting he expressed “deep concerns” about the “possibility that China will provide lethal material support to Russia”.

“To date, we have seen Chinese companies… provide non-lethal support to Russia for use in Ukraine. The concern that we have now is based on information we have that they’re considering providing lethal support,” he said.

He didn’t go into detail regarding the specific intelligence the US had about China’s prospective plans. When questioned about what the US thought China might contribute to Russia, he responded that it would mostly be weapons and ammunition.

The Wagner Group, a mercenary organisation that provides Russia with hundreds of men, is accused of receiving satellite footage of Ukraine from a Chinese corporation, for which the US has imposed sanctions.

Mr Blinken told Media that “of course, in China, there’s really no distinction between private companies and the state”.

If China provided Russia with weapons, that would cause a “serious problem for us and in our relationship”, he added.

As a result of the US shooting down an alleged Chinese surveillance balloon in early February, relations between Washington and Beijing were already tense. Notwithstanding the heated remarks that were said, both parties appeared ashamed by the situation and eager to move on.

Yet, US-Chinese ties would worsen significantly if China were to send weaponry to support Russian soldiers in Ukraine.

The purpose of Mr. Blinken’s warning appears to be to prevent China from taking that action.

Also, Mr. Blinken stated that the US was concerned about China assisting Russia in evading Western sanctions intended to harm Russia’s economy. Russia’s largest market for its oil, gas, and coal is China, where bilateral commerce has increased.

“We’ve been very clear that we shouldn’t fixate or focus on any particular weapons system,” he said.

Nevertheless, he said that the West needed to make sure Ukraine had the resources it would need “in the months ahead” for a future counteroffensive against Russia. In the eastern parts of Ukraine, where some of the war’s hardest combat has occurred, Russia is currently attempting to push.

According to Reuters, Mr. Wang claimed yesterday in Munich that China has “neither stood by quietly nor thrown fuel on the fire” for the Ukraine crisis.

Wang indicated that China would publish a text outlining its stance on resolving the conflict. According to him, the declaration will stipulate that every country’s geographical integrity must be respected.

“I suggest that everybody starts to think calmly, especially friends in Europe, about what kind of efforts we can make to stop this war,” Mr. Wang said.

He added that there were “some forces that seemingly don’t want negotiations to succeed, or for the war to end soon”, but did not say who he meant.

The Chinese President, Mr. Xi, is scheduled to deliver a “peace speech” on the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Friday, 24 February, according to Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani.

Mr Tajani told Italian radio that Mr Xi’s speech would call for peace without condemning Russia, Reuters reported.

During their meeting, Mr Blinken and Mr Wang also exchanged strong words on the deepening row over an alleged Chinese spy balloon that was shot down over the US.

Mr Blinken said during the meeting that the US would not “stand for any violation of our sovereignty” and said “this irresponsible act must never again occur”.

Mr Blinken told Media that other nations were concerned about what he called China’s “surveillance balloon program” across five continents.

Mr Wang, meanwhile, called the episode a “political farce manufactured by the US” and accused them of “using all means to block and suppress China”. China has denied sending a spy balloon.

Moreover, China issued a warning on Sunday morning, saying that if the US exacerbated the dispute over the balloon, it would “carry all the repercussions.” In the event “the US insists on taking advantage of the matter,” China stated in a statement from its foreign ministry, as quoted by Reuters, it would “follow through to the finish.”

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