U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has warned China that it would “absolutely” face consequences if it helped Moscow evade sweeping sanctions over the war in Ukraine.
Russia has asked China for military equipment since the start of its February 24 invasion of Ukraine, sparking concern in the White House that Beijing may undermine Western efforts to help Ukrainian forces defend their country, the Financial Times and Washington Post reported Sunday, citing U.S. officials.
Asked about the reports, Liu Pengyu, spokeperson for China’s embassy in Washington, said: “I’ve never heard of that.”
He said China found the current situation in Ukraine “disconcerting” and added: “We support and encourage all efforts that are conducive to a peaceful settlement of the crisis.”
Liu said “utmost efforts should be made to support Russia and Ukraine in carrying forward negotiations despite the difficult situation to produce a peaceful outcome.”
Sullivan told CNN on Sunday that Washington believed China was aware that Russia was planning some action in Ukraine before the invasion took place, although Beijing may not have understood the full extent of what was planned.
Now, he said, Washington was watching closely to see to what extent Beijing provided economic or material support to Russia, and would impose consequences if that occurred.
“We are communicating directly, privately to Beijing, that there will absolutely be consequences for large-scale sanctions evasion efforts or support to Russia to backfill them,” Sullivan said.
“We will not allow that to go forward and allow there to be a lifeline to Russia from these economic sanctions from any country, anywhere in the world.”
Sullivan is due to meet with China’s top diplomat Yang Jiechi in Rome on Monday
A senior Biden administration official said the war in Ukraine and its impact on regional and global security would be a “significant topic” during the meeting with Yang, given China’s moves to align “itself with Russia to advance their own vision of the world order.”
The meeting, which had been in planning for some time, is part of a broader effort by Washington and Beijing to maintain open channels of communication and manage competition between the world’s two largest economies, the official said.
No specific outcomes were expected, the source added, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Wang Huiyao, head of a Beijing think tank and adviser to the Chinese government, warned of “an escalatory spiral” in a column published in the New York Times on Sunday, and said China was “uniquely positioned to act as a neutral mediator between a Western-supported Ukraine and Russia” to end the war.
“Unpalatable as some in the West may find the idea, it is time to offer the Russian leader an off-ramp with China’s help,” Wang wrote.
The United States on Saturday said it would rush up to $200 million worth of additional weapons to Ukrainian forces as they try to defend against Russian shelling in the largest war in Europe since World War Two
