Examining China's Role in the Russia-Ukraine Conflict

As Russian President Vladimir Putin continues his invasion of Ukraine, China's allegiances and purported plans to get involved are in the spotlight.

Reports across the spectrum suggest that China has shown a willingness to provide military support to Russia. As Russian forces reportedly run low on supplies, the country is believed to have asked China for ​equipment and other support. During a phone call with Russian leaders a day after the invasion, China's foreign minister said China "respects each country's sovereignty and territorial integrity" but also understands "Russia's reasonable concern on security issues." Weeks before the invasion, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met and released a joint statement touting their "no limits" partnership.

Right-rated voices often called on the U.S. to take more steps to aid Ukraine and limit the impact of Chinese assistance for Russia. Some compared Putin's invasion to China's purported plans to take over Taiwan, and stressed the importance of Russian failure in Ukraine in order to make China reconsider. Writing a guest essay for the New York Times, the founder of a Beijing-based think tank that advises the Chinese government argued that China could mediate a solution to the conflict that would give Putin "sufficient security assurances" and protect "Ukraine’s core sovereignty," and said "there is no country better placed to do so." A writer for National Review (Right bias) responded to that essay, accusing the Times of publishing Chinese propaganda and downplaying the writer's connections to the Chinese government.