China has rejected accusations that it was aware of President Putin’s plans to invade Ukraine and claims it would have tried to prevent the onslaught had it been warned beforehand.
Qin Gang, the Chinese ambassador to Washington, issued a fresh rebuttal against allegations that Putin told President Xi in advance that he would invade, only to delay the attack until after Beijing’s Winter Olympics had concluded.
The pair met on February 4, the opening day of the Games, and simultaneously promised to deepen ties in a partnership with “no limits”. The Games concluded on February 20, with Putin ordering the offensive four days later.
Qin’s statement followed allegations that Beijing was aware of Moscow’s intentions before the war began, and that Russia had sought military assistance from China.
“Let me say this responsibly,” wrote Qin in the Washington Post. “Assertions that China knew about, acquiesced to or tacitly supported this war are purely disinformation.
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“All these claims serve only the purpose of shifting blame to and slinging mud at China. There were more than 6,000 Chinese citizens in Ukraine. China is the biggest trading partner of both Russia and Ukraine, and the largest importer of crude oil and natural gas in the world.
“Conflict between Russia and Ukraine does no good for China. Had China known about the imminent crisis, we would have tried our best to prevent it.”
Although it recently acknowledged for the first time that there was a war under way in Ukraine, Beijing has yet to condemn Moscow for the invasion, dashing hopes in the West that Xi could emerge as a peacemaker, while using China’s economic influence to stop the war.
Western intelligence had previously claimed that senior Chinese officials asked their Russian counterparts not to invade until after the Winter Olympics ended. President Xi, it is claimed, had sought assurance that nothing would distract from the Games.
The assertions come amid the backdrop of growing anger at China’s role in the war. Washington claims that Russia has asked China for military equipment as supplies run low and the invasion stalls.
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Qin suggested that, for the war to stop, Putin must be given a guarantee of no further Nato expansion to the east.
“The long-term peace and stability of Europe relies on the principle of indivisible security,” he said. “There must be a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture.
“The priority now is to achieve a ceasefire to protect civilians from war. We stand ready to do whatever we can and work with other parties. Our ultimate purpose is the end of war and support regional and global stability.”
