U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the Chinese cannot “have it both ways” by seeking better relations with Europe while supplying goods that pose what he called “the greatest challenge to European security since the end of the Cold War.”
He said this at the World Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia, The Guardian reports.
The US Secretary of State admitted that China does not directly supply Russia with weapons, missiles, or ammunition, as Iran or North Korea do.
What China is doing, is providing invaluable support to Russia’s defence industrial base that’s helping Russia deal with the massive pressure that’s been exerted through sanctions, through export controls and other measures.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken
According to him, over the past year, Russia has been producing ammunition and equipment at a faster pace than at any time in its modern history, including during the Cold War.
It (Russia – ed.) is getting massive inputs of machine tools, micro electronics, optics, mostly coming from China. Now these are dual-use items, but we know very clearly where so many of them are going. And this poses two problems. It is enabling Russia to continue the aggression against Ukraine. So it’s perpetuating a war that China says it would like to see come to an end.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken
He noted that it also allows Russia to rebuild its defense industrial base, which European countries are deeply concerned will be turned against them if Russia succeeds in Ukraine.
And so at the very time that China is seeking better relations with countries in Europe, it is also fueling the greatest challenge to European security since the end of the cold war.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken
Earlier, Blinken also said that the United States has seen evidence of China’s attempts to “influence and possibly interfere” in the upcoming US elections.
As reported, during his visit to China, Blinken confirmed the White House’s readiness for new sanctions against Beijing if it continues to support Russia in its full-scale war against Ukraine.
Read more in our article China is accused by the US of helping Russia’s war in Ukraine.
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