Russia has asked China for military equipment to aid in the Ukrainian invasion, the U.S. says.
“We will not allow that to go forward,” he said. China in turn accused on Monday the U.S. of spreading “disinformation.”
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put China in a delicate spot with two of its biggest trading partners: the U.S. and European Union. China needs access to those markets, yet it also has shown support for Moscow, joining with Russia in declaring a friendship with “no limits.” Without giving details, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Monday that the “Ukraine situation will definitely be a hot topic” at the meeting, which had been scheduled before Russia invaded its neighbor.
The White House said the talks will focus on the direct impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine on regional and global security. The striking U.S. accusations about Russian disinformation and Chinese complicity came after Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova alleged with no evidence that the U.S. was financing Ukrainian chemical and biological weapons labs.
China has been one of few countries to avoid criticizing the Russians for its invasion of Ukraine. China’s leader Xi Jinping hosted Putin for the opening of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, just three weeks before Russia invaded on Feb. 24. Chinese officials have said Washington shouldn’t be able to complain about Russia’s actions because the U.S. invaded Iraq under false pretenses. The U.S. claimed to have evidence Saddam Hussein was stockpiling weapons of mass destruction though none was ever found.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the talks with the U.S. were underway around 11:50 a.m. Rome time , but gave no other details. In his talks with senior Chinese foreign policy adviser Yang Jiechi, Sullivan will indeed be looking for limits in what Beijing will do for Moscow. Asked at a daily briefing about the reported Russian request for assistance, Zhao responded: “The U.S. has been spreading disinformation targeting China recently over the Ukraine issue. It is malicious.”
Biden administration officials say Beijing is spreading false Russian claims that Ukraine was running chemical and biological weapons labs with U.S. support. They say Chinaif Russia moves ahead with a biological or chemical weapons attack on Ukrainians. The Russian claim was echoed by Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao, who claimed there were 26 bio-labs and related facilities in “which the U.S. Department of Defense has absolute control.” The United Nations has said it has received no information backing up such accusations.
During Putin’s visit, the two leaders issued a 5,000-word statement declaring limitless “friendship”.
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