Russia sought China military aid for Ukraine war, says US

Bloomberg

US officials say Russia has asked China for military assistance for its war in Ukraine, a sign that the Biden administration is increasingly concerned about the role Vladimir Putin’s most powerful diplomatic partner could play in the conflict.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss delicate matters, did not specify what kind of equipment Moscow had requested. The official declined to say how the administration knows these details. Another US official said the request is not new, and was made just after Russia’s invasion. White House spokespeople declined to comment.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian rejected the reports of the Russian request as “disinformation” and “malicious.”
“The top priority now is that all parties should exercise restraint to deescalate and cool down the situation instead of fueling the tensions,” Zhao told a regular briefing in Beijing. “We should promote a diplomatic settlement rather than further escalating the tension.”
The Kremlin has also denied the reports, insisting Russia has all the resources it needs.
“Russia has the independent capacity to continue the operation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call. “As we said, it’s going according to plan and will be completed in full.”
Rejecting assertions by US and European officials that the campaign is going slower than Moscow expected, Peskov said it will be completed on schedule. He declined to comment on when the conflict is expected to end.
This latest development comes as the US and China plan to hold their first high-level, in-person talks since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The White House said National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan is meeting in Rome with China’s top diplomat, Communist Party Politburo member Yang Jiechi.
The meeting is part of the Biden administration’s ongoing pressure on Beijing to exert its influence on Putin to end the crisis and was arranged before news of Russia’s outreach to China spilled into the public sphere. The Russian Embassy in Washington didn’t respond to a request for comment.
As the conflict extends into its third week, Putin’s campaign has run into difficulties. The question is whether it’s in President Xi Jinping’s interest to engage with any Russian weapons request and set off China’s biggest foreign policy shift since Richard Nixon’s visit in 1972. Xi has tried to thread a needle in neither condemning nor supporting Putin’s actions. But while Russia sells far more arms to China than it buys, Beijing’s rapid military modernisation has seen it produce more advanced weapons in recent years. Sending weapons would risk severe economic penalties on Chinese companies and a big escalation in trade tensions with the US at a delicate time.