During an interview with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, the US President has warned him of the possible “consequences” in case of help provided in Moscow. China takes no commitment.
by and
“The one who hung the tiger bell must take away.” If we follow the logic of this pictorial expression, appearing in Chinese press release Posted Friday, March 18 at the end of the interview between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, Beijing cultivates his ambiguity, Face to the war in Ukraine. The tiger is Russia, but its tamer – obviously, the United States – would be responsible for its anger. It’s a solution. Exactly the opposite of what Westerners think, but also a large part of the UN country-members.
Beyond this formula, the statement broadcast by Beijing gives an idea of the Chinese priorities. It begins with a long pass on bilateral relations, pointing out that Joe Biden reiterated his desire not to arouse “a new cold war” with China, or foment alliances against it, and even less to support independence. Taiwan. For its part, in a very succinct communiqué, the White House confirms that its policy on Taiwan remains identical and that it “continues to oppose any unilateral change in the status quo”.
For China, Taiwan is a more important issue than Ukraine. From this question depends on its relationship with the United States. “Misuse of the Taiwanese question will have a disruptive impact on the bilateral relationship,” warns the Chinese statement. Sign of the importance of this issue, two warships, an American and a Chinese, navigated in the Strait of Taiwan, Friday, a few hours before the meeting. “The war in Ukraine makes an intervention in Taiwan militarily, economically and politically more complicated,” says Evan Medeiros, Sino-American relations specialist at Georgetown University in Washington.
The speed with which South Korea, Japan and Australia have adopted sanctions against Russia is a clear signal sent to China. On the other hand, Beijing can not dislocate from Moscow, its only possible support to the Security Council in case of invasion of Taiwan. And on a personal basis, Xi Jinping can hardly, a few months from the Congress of the Communist Party, to distance himself with Vladimir Putin with whom he has just concluded a “limited strategic partnership”.
China, ” opposite the war “
Concerning the current conflict in Ukraine, China repeats its attachment – of pure form – to international law and is “opposed to war”. There is no official question of any military support in Russia, relied with Washington. The photo of a long military convoy taken in the north of China towards Russia which circulated on Twitter Friday would be a “false” according to the Chinese administration. It would date from 2021.
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