China is not deliberately circumventing sanctions on Russia, a senior Chinese diplomat said on Saturday, a day after the European Union warned Beijing against allowing Moscow to work around measures imposed after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Wang Lutong, director-general of European affairs at China's foreign ministry, told reporters that China is contributing to the global economy by conducting normal trade with Russia.
Beijing, which has forged closer ties with Moscow, has refused to condemn Russia's actions in Ukraine or call it an invasion and has repeatedly criticised what it calls illegal and unilateral Western sanctions. The EU and China concluded an investment agreement in late 2020, but that was put on hold after Brussels sanctioned Chinese officials over alleged human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region, which prompted Beijing to blacklist EU individuals and entities.“I think the Europeans have got to remove the sanctions first, and then we can explore the possibility of removing other retaliation measures, which is reciprocal,” he said.
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