'Why on earth...': Chinese FM quashes rumours of supplying weapons to Russia
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang
China has refuted the claims suggesting it had supplied weapons to Russia in the ongoing war with Ukraine. Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang took a stern stance and said Beijing was being unfairly dragged into the conflict.
“China did not create the crisis. It is not a party to the crisis. And it has not provided weapons to either side of the conflict. Why on earth is there blame and sanctions on China? This is absolutely unacceptable," Qin told reporters on the sidelines of China's annual parliamentary meeting.
“There seems to be an invisible hand pushing for the protraction and escalation of the conflict,” he said before adding, “Ukraine crisis is a tragedy that could have been avoided."
China and Russia have a relatively close working relationship. After Russia suffered setbacks in the war, news reports suggested that China had started delivering weapons to Kremlin - a claim that has not been proven so far.
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Read more:China tells United States to not cross the 'red line' on Taiwan question
The Chinese minister added that reason and dialogue were required to solve the situation instead of imposing sanctions.
“Conflict, sanctions and pressure will not solve the problem. What is needed is calmness, reason and dialogue while respecting the legitimate security concerns of all parties.”
WATCH |China releases 12-point policy paper on Russia-Ukraine war
The US, however, continues to allege that China is supplying arms through clandestine means. In January, the Biden administration imposed sanctions on a Chinese firm named Changsha Tianyi Space Science and Technology Research Institute for allegedly supplying satellite images to Putin's private militia, the Wagner group.
“These images were gathered in order to enable Wagner combat operations in Ukraine,” read a statement released by the treasury department.
Read more: China planning to send 'lethal support' to Russia for the Ukraine war, claims Blinken
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last month met top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi at the Munich Security Conference and warned him of consequences if China supplied the arms. Shortly after the meeting, Blinken gave an interview and doubled down on the warning.
"One of the things that I shared with him (Chinese top diplomat Wang Yi) was a growing concern on our part, that China is considering providing lethal support to Russia in its aggression against Ukraine."
While allegations fly left, right and centre, Chinese media is reporting that Xi Jinping might visit Putin after the culmination of the Chinese parliament next week. Putin had previously extended an official invitation to Xi.
(With inputs from agencies)
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