“You can’t have both; »

WASHINGTON NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday criticized Chinese leaders for publicly declaring support for Ukraine in its war against Russia, while quietly backing Moscow and sending it military supplies.

“China is fueling the greatest armed conflict in Europe since World War II,” Stoltenberg said at an event at the Wilson Center in Washington. “At the same time, she wants to maintain good relations with the West.

“Well, Beijing can’t have it both ways.”

Since the Russian invasion began in February 2022, China has publicly declared its desire for peace and maintained a publicly neutral stance.

As recently as June 3, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that Beijing “values ​​its strategic partnership with Ukraine.”

“Since the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis, China has maintained communication and cooperation with Ukraine,” she said. “China remains Ukraine’s largest trading partner. Our embassy in Ukraine continues to operate normally.

However, China is also Russia's largest trading power, a position that was solidified after dozens of countries around the world sanctioned exports and imports to and from Russia.

While China says it has not sent Russia any weapons for use in Ukraine, U.S. officials say Beijing has rendered that distinction meaningless by supplying Moscow with critical technological components for the war.

“Publicly, [Chinese] President Xi [Jinping] “He tried to give the impression that he was taking a back seat in this conflict to avoid sanctions and keep trade flowing,” Stoltenberg said Monday.

Beijing also sent equipment used in weapons production, including “missiles, tanks.” [and] plane,” according to the NATO chief.

“Beijing shares high-end technologies, such as semiconductors or dual-use objects. Last year, Russia imported 90% of its microelectronic products from China,” he said. “China is also working to provide Russia with improved capabilities and imagery.

“All of this causes a lot of death and destruction in Ukraine, strengthens Russia's defense industrial base and evades the impact of sanctions and export controls. »

The United States took note when it sanctioned seven China-based companies last week for shipping millions of dollars worth of materials to Russia, including items that could be used in security systems. weapons.

“The idea that we can separate the threats we see in Europe posed by Russia and Xi's threats and challenges in the Asia-Pacific posed by China is false,” Stoltenberg said. “Our security is global, not regional, and this is very clearly demonstrated in Ukraine. »

China has said it respects Ukraine's territorial integrity, an argument used by Beijing to justify its illegal claims to large swaths of land in the South China Sea, including Taiwan.

However, China has neither pushed Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin to return Crimea to Ukraine, nor implored his proxies to return the eastern Donbass region to kyiv.

China has also taken other steps in favor of Moscow, including proposing a controversial peace plan last year that would have seen Ukraine submit to Russian demands with little in return.

The United States has decried the planned truce, with National Security Council spokesman John Kirby saying that while a peace plan may sound good…any proposal from [China] would be one-sided and reflect only the Russian perspective.

Last weekend, China snubbed a peace summit held in Lucerne, Switzerland, attended by representatives from more than 100 countries and international organizations.

Beijing declined an invitation after learning that Moscow would not be represented.

“China has repeatedly stressed that the international peace conference must meet three important elements, namely recognition of Russia and Ukraine, equal participation of all parties and fair discussion on all levels of peace. peace,” Mao said. “As far as China is concerned, the meeting does not yet appear to address all three of these elements and that is exactly why China would not be able to attend the meeting.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told summit participants on Saturday that he hoped Russia, and by extension China, would attend the next edition of the event.