The Chinese Ambassador to the EU called statements about the “boundless friendship” of the PRC with Russia “rhetoric.” He added that Beijing does not support Moscow in the war with Ukraine and does not recognize Crimea and Donbass as Russian.

Chinese Ambassador to the European Union Fu Cong said that China does not support Russian aggression in Ukraine, does not supply and is not going to supply weapons to Russia, and does not recognize Crimea and Donbass as Russian. In addition, in an interview with The New York Times, Cong called statements about China's "boundless friendship" with Russia "rhetoric."

The New York Times correspondent spoke with China's representative to the EU ahead of Fu Cong's meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who went on a three-day trip to China on April 5.

In an interview, the Chinese ambassador tried to "distance himself" from Russia, the newspaper notes. He commented on the statement signed by Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping three weeks before the start of the war in Ukraine. The document spoke, among other things, of the "boundless friendship" between Moscow and Beijing. Fu Cong said that China has never supported Russia in its military aggression in Ukraine and added: "[Friendship] 'without limits' is nothing but rhetoric."

The ambassador also told The New York Times that China has not supplied Russia with weapons and will not do so in the future. Fu Cong added that Beijing does not recognize the annexed territories, including Crimea and Donbass, as Russian.

According to him, China did not condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, because it was sympathetic to Moscow's statements - it insisted that this was a defensive war against NATO encroachments. In addition, the Chinese government believes that the underlying causes of this war are more complex than Western leaders are trying to present, the diplomat said.

The Kremlin, in response to the remarks of the Chinese ambassador, said that Russia is guided "by the content and spirit" of the recent talks between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, which were "very substantive."

Chinese leader Xi Jinping was on a visit to Moscow from March 20 to 22. During negotiations with Putin, the leaders of the countries called each other "dear friends."

The US State Department called Xi Jinping's official visit to Moscow evidence that China is preparing a "diplomatic cover" for alleged Russian crimes in Ukraine.

Sources: The New York Times , CNN

To get top news faster, subscribe to our telegram and twitter .