WASHINGTON — China’s stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine puts it in an “awkward” position internationally and any weapons support to Russia would come with “real costs,” U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said.
Sullivan emphasized in three interviews with U.S. television networks on Sunday that the Biden administration doesn’t have evidence that China is giving “lethal support” to President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, while seeking to warn Beijing of the risks.
“When China talks rhetorically about the war in Ukraine, they tie themselves into knots, because they know that going all-in with Russia in this war in Ukraine would alienate a substantial number of countries that they are working hard to maintain good relations with,” Sullivan said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
China’s position “is much more awkward” than the U.S. stance, he said.
Tensions between the world’s two top economies have been running high since Secretary of State Antony Blinken and China’s diplomat, Wang Yi, met in Germany on Feb. 18. Blinken said afterward that the U.S. had evidence that China was considering helping arm Russia, a claim dismissed by Beijing. The U.S. hasn’t provided public evidence for its assertion.
President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jingping don’t have any call scheduled for now, “though I anticipate the two leaders will speak at some point in the not too distant future,” Sullivan said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
With Russia’s war on Ukraine entering its second year, Sullivan said Kyiv still has the strong support of a large international coalition, a fact not lost on China.
“This war presents real complications for Beijing,” he said on CNN. “And Beijing will have to make its own decisions about how to proceed, whether it provides military assistance. But if it goes down that road, it will come at real costs to China.”
China on Friday called for a cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine, but the 12-point proposal gained little international support. Several of the measures outlined would, if carried out, favor Russia.
U.S. officials have previously criticized China for attempting to portray itself as a neutral party in the conflict while simultaneously giving Moscow what the U.S. alleges is diplomatic, economic and propaganda support.
China last week abstained from a United Nations resolution calling for an end to the war. The measure passed 141-7, with 32 abstentions. The U.N. resolution included a demand for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine’s territory.
China was “one of a number of countries that just tried to stand on the sidelines,” Sullivan said.
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(With assistance from Josh Wingrove.)
