Biden Suggests China COULD Deliver Arms to Russia – When Russian President Vladimir Putin requested military support from China in Ukraine, Chinese President Xi Jinping didn’t respond as the Russian leader likely hoped.
The Kremlin denied in March of 2022 that Russian officials had asked China for support, and President Xi later told Putin that his government wanted to see the conflict in Ukraine come to an end.
Joe Biden Seems a Little Worried
On Friday, March 24, however, U.S. President Joe Biden seemed to suggest that China could be on the verge of providing Russia with military hardware to assist with its war efforts in Ukraine.
Speaking at a press conference during a visit to Canada this week, the president said that he has heard for “months” that China was planning to send military equipment to Russia.
“I’ve been hearing now for the past three months that China is going to provide significant weapons to Russia,” Biden said, adding, “They haven’t yet.”
The president added that it “doesn’t mean they won’t” send weapons, and reiterated that it hasn’t happened “yet.”
“I don’t take China lightly. I don’t take Russia lightly,” the president said.
Will China Do It?
China is already technically providing some support to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, though it is not publicly sanctioned by the Chinese government, nor does it involve the supply of lethal weapons. In July of last year, reports revealed how Chinese companies were selling microchips, electrical and technological components, and raw materials to Russia that were required by the Russian military.
Microchip shipments from China to Russia more than doubled in the first half of 2022, reaching $50 million in less than six months.
On February 23, 2023, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also said that the Chinese government likely approved the sale of non-lethal “dual-use” products that could technically be used by the Russian military in Ukraine.
While the Chinese government has repeatedly insisted that there will be no Chinese involvement in the war in Ukraine, U.S. intelligence suggests otherwise. Blinken warned Chinese Foreign Affairs Director Wang Yi last month against providing any lethal aid to Russia.
While China’s position has not officially changed, Vladimir Putin’s recent U-turn over China’s 12-point Ukraine peace plan suggests that negotiations between the two countries have reached a new stage. President Xi told Putin on Wednesday, at the end of a summit held in Moscow, that the two countries would enter a “new era” of cooperation and “changes not seen for 100 years” are on their way.
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Whether that involves military support in Ukraine or simply a new economic alliance between the two countries, remains to be seen.
Jack Buckby is 19FortyFive’s Breaking News Editor. He is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.
