EU leaders are in possession of "very reliable evidence" that China is considering military assistance to Russia, a senior EU official told POLITICO, threatening potential trade measures if weapons' deliveries go ahead.
It follows a similar warning from U.S. officials earlier this week that the Russian government had asked China for military equipment and other support, as POLITICO and other media outlets reported. A subsequent Financial Times report said China signaled openness to the request. It is not immediately clear whether the latest EU information derives from the same sources or Europe's own intelligence.
"EU leaders have very reliable evidence that China is considering providing military aid to Russia. All the leaders are very aware of what’s going on," the senior EU official said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly about confidential information.
He did not say what kind of assistance Moscow had requested.
"We are concerned about the fact that China is flirting with the Russians," he added. The EU will "impose trade barriers against China" should Beijing proceed with Russia's request, he said, as "this is the only language Beijing understands."
The EU-China summit, scheduled for April 1 with President Xi Jinping, will go on as scheduled, as confirmed in a meeting with all EU countries' top representatives in Brussels on Friday.
The deepening Ukraine crisis is seen as a test to the strength of the Russia-China relations. Beijing has repeatedly dismissed U.S. reports about its involvement in the Ukraine crisis as "disinformation.
spazz720 on March 18th, 2022 at 17:29 UTC »
I can’t buy China risking their investments in the West for Russia.
dravenonred on March 18th, 2022 at 13:29 UTC »
China will first decide what decision is in the best interests of China, then pretend to waffle until someone pays them enough benefit for the same decision they already made.
GeneReddit123 on March 18th, 2022 at 13:19 UTC »
This article is true, but simultaneously (and recently) they started openly broadcasting the scenes of atrocities in Ukraine on their state-run TV. And unlike the Russians, they don't claim the Ukrainians are "bombing themselves." China's propaganda is intentionally tee-tottering, so far presenting it as a massive, tragic war without explicitly blaming either side, but the way they crafted their message, they can easily blame one side or the other, and end up with massive public "support" either way.
China is hedging their bets. Their support can go both ways, likely based on what kind of deal they can get with the US, or whether Putin's oil and other concessions will be worth more than the threat of Western sanctions. They also wonder if they can use this to get any advantages related to Taiwan - and siding with whom is better for that purpose. Today's call between Biden and Xi might force the coin to flip one way or the other.
Make no mistake, China isn't America's friend. But they're also not Russia's friend. China only stands for China, the rest are friendships of convenience, to make or break as needed.