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BRUSSELS — It might be a “crimson line” for the European Union if China sends arms to Russia, the EU’s international coverage chief mentioned Monday.
Josep Borrell’s warning got here two days after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed “deep concern” that China was contemplating offering doubtlessly “deadly help” to Russia for its struggle towards Ukraine.
Recalling a gathering he held on Saturday with high Chinese language diplomat Wang Yi, Borrell informed reporters: “I expressed our sturdy concern about China offering arms to Russia. I requested him not to try this, and expressing not solely our concern, however the truth that for us, it might be a crimson line in our relationship.
“He informed me that they’re not going to do it, that they don’t plan to do it,” Borrell mentioned, including: “However we’ll stay vigilant.”
Different EU international ministers attending a International Affairs Council in Brussels additionally warned Beijing to not cross that line.
“If such a call is taken [by China] it’ll positively have penalties, in fact,” Tobias Billström, international minister of Sweden, which holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, mentioned. “We stand aspect by aspect with america on that message.”
Lithuanian International Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis mentioned the EU could be on the identical web page because the U.S. ought to Chinese language arms find yourself in Russian palms.
“There have been those that anticipated the West … to not be united when it got here to the Russian assault on Ukraine, however we have been united. So I’d assume that, drawing from this lesson, there could be sufficient arguments for China to not help Russia in its genocidal struggle in Ukraine,” Landsbergis mentioned.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy additionally urged China to stay “pragmatic.”
“I personally have appealed to the Chinese language management by direct channels and publicly to not provide any assist to the Russians on this struggle. My hope is that Beijing will keep a realistic angle, as a result of in any other case we’re risking World Battle III, I believe they’re effectively conscious of that,” he mentioned in an interview with Italian media. “Our relationship with China has at all times been glorious, we’ve had intense financial relations for a few years, and it’s in everybody’s curiosity that they don’t change.”
Chinese language state-owned protection corporations have been discovered to be transport navigation tools, jamming know-how and jet-fighter components to sanctioned Russian government-owned protection corporations, Wall Road Journal reported earlier this month.
Nicolas Camut contributed reporting.
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