Xi Jinping and Putin (Credit: Kim Kyung-Hoon – Pool/Getty Images)
[See China, February 26, 2022](See Chinese reporter Xiao Ran compiled/comprehensive report) Just in timeRussiaRaidUkraineFacing the harshness of the Westsanctionon the occasion,ChinaThe two largest stateBankRussian commodity financing will be restricted, suggestingBeijingstance on Moscow changed.In fact, sinceXi Jinping PutinAfter the summit, Beijing has been adjusting its attitude towards Russia under international pressure.
The offshore arm of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has stopped issuing dollar-denominated letters of credit for purchases of Russian goods ready for export, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg, while Bank of China has also restricted funding. Some clients may still use RMB-denominated letters of credit subject to approval by senior management.
The surprising turn highlights a possible rift between Moscow and Beijing, Bloomberg reported. Russia and China are geopolitical allies in a joint confrontation with the United States and have grown closer in recent years, especially as Russia is China’s main energy supplier. China’s largest banks hold billions in Russian assets, and Beijing has provided Moscow with tens of billions of dollars over the years.
But Beijing has forged closer economic ties with Western countries that are larger export customers, a major source of technology and investment, and control China’s access to the international dollar system.
Despite restrictions by two state-owned banks, Beijing has pledged to maintain normal trade with both Russia and Ukraine.
Xi and Putin also had a phone call on Friday about the situation in Russia and Ukraine, with Xi reportedly urging Putin to negotiate a solution to the crisis. According to China Central Television (CCTV), Xi told Putin: “The situation in eastern Ukraine has undergone rapid changes, which has drawn great attention from the international community. China’s position will be based on the merits of the Ukrainian issue itself. China supports Russia and Ukraine to resolve the issue through negotiation. question.”
Under pressure, Beijing adjusts stance on Moscow
In a phone call on the 25th, Xi urged Putin to negotiate with Ukraine to resolve the issue. The Kremlin said Putin told Xi he was ready to hold talks with Ukraine based on “signals just received from Kiev.”
For weeks, China’s foreign policy establishment has ignored warnings from the United States and its European allies that Russia will use force, accusing Washington of hyping up the Russian threat.
Until the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war, Beijing tried to adjust its stance on the situation in Ukraine. Some analysts pointed out that this is related to the multiple pressures on Beijing.
Since the Russian invasion, Beijing has been in a difficult diplomatic quandary, and so far has not publicly called the large-scale Russian attack an invasion. On the one hand, it needs to respect the partnership with Russia, which the two sides said only a few weeks ago “without limits,” without abandoning its commitment to the principle of non-intervention foreign policy, which requires it to explicitly condemn Russia’s attack. Moreover, Beijing does not want to completely derail its relationship with the United States and Europe.
A few hours after Russia’s raid on Ukraine, the United States named and criticized the CCP for condoning Russia’s waging war, and believed that China and Russia would join forces to change the world order and create a new “extremely illiberal” order.
“Deutsche Welle” pointed out that the top CCP does not want to see Russia’s military action, because the escalating situation in Ukraine will lead to the deterioration of the already tense Sino-European relationship. Combined with the fact that this year is a critical year for Xi Jinping’s re-election bid, Beijing does not want to bear the economic consequences of Russia’s invasion.
According to the Voice of America report, some experts believe that if Russia invades Ukraine, China will not provide military assistance to Russia to avoid becoming an open supporter of Russia’s war.
Washington warned Chinese companies in early February of serious consequences if they tried to bypass U.S. export restrictions on Russia if Russia invaded Ukraine.
Putin went to Beijing to meet with Xi Jinping on February 4. In the joint statement after the meeting, Xi Jinping expressed his opposition to the eastward expansion of NATO, which was regarded by the outside world as a closer relationship between the two sides. For a time, the West frequently raised the alarm on this. The Wall Street Journal quoted Chinese diplomats and government advisers as saying that the top Chinese Communist Party adjusted its stance after several days of closed-door meetings, so as not to further intensify Sino-U.S. relations and damage national development in the long run.
Later, at the Munich Security Conference on February 19, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated that China respects Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, showing that Beijing does not fully agree with Moscow’s handling of Ukraine.
Signed several agreements with Ukraine
According to Radio Free Asia, in the past few decades, the Chinese government and the Ukrainian government have signed numerous declarations and agreements, including the 1992 Sino-Ukrainian Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations and the 1994 Sino-Ukrainian Joint Statement. independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2013, Xi Jinping signed the “Sino-Ukrainian Friendship and Cooperation Treaty” with the then Ukrainian President Yanukovych in Beijing, stating: “The two sides firmly support each other in safeguarding national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, ensuring political and social stability, and developing national economy.” China promised to “unconditionally refrain from the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons by Ukraine, which is a non-nuclear-weapon state, and to provide Ukraine with appropriate security in the event of aggression or threat of such aggression by the use of nuclear weapons. guarantee.”
The two sides stand for earnestly abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, peacefully resolve international disputes and hotspot issues, and oppose the willful resort to force or threat of force.
However, when the real war came, the CCP ignored the statements and commitments signed with Ukraine and took a negative position.
Source: Watch China
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