BEIJING, China
\nBeijing has strongly denied US claims that China was considering arming Russia in its war against Ukraine, as it reiterated a call for dialogue to end the conflict.
\nA Chinese spokesperson said the US is in no position to make demands after US top diplomat Anthony Blinken warned Beijing against providing weapons to Russia in the war against Ukraine.
\nSpeaking at a regular briefing on Monday, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said China \u201cwill never accept the US pointing fingers at Sino-Russian relations or even coercing us\u201d.
\nHis comment comes after Blinken expressed \u201cdeep concerns\u201d about the \u201cpossibility that China will provide lethal material support to Russia\u201d.
\n\u201cTo date, we have seen Chinese companies \u2026 provide non-lethal support to Russia for use in Ukraine. The concern that we have now is based on information we have that they\u2019re considering providing lethal support,\u201d Blinken told CBS News after he met China\u2019s foreign minister Wang Yi on Saturday at the Munich Security Conference.
\nHe also pointed to Beijing\u2019s \u201ccollaborative partnership\u201d with Moscow which he said was built on the basis of non-alignment and non-confrontation.
\nOn the back of Blinken\u2019s remarks, the European Union\u2019s foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said on Monday that China potentially providing arms to Moscow \u201cwould be a red line\u201d in the bloc\u2019s relationship with China.
\nBorrell said he expressed his \u201cstrong concern\u201d to Wang Yi and asked him to refrain from arms deliveries to Russia.
\nChina\u2019s foreign minister Wang Yi was due in Moscow later on Monday for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
\nIn February last year, shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine, China promised a \u201cno limits\u201d partnership with Russia, which set off alarm bells in the West.
\nChina has refrained from condemning the war or calling it an \u201cinvasion\u201d, blaming the US and NATO for provoking the Kremlin. It has also blasted the sanctions imposed on Russia.
\nSince the war started, Beijing and Moscow economic links have boomed as Moscow\u2019s connections with the West have shrivelled.
\nThe West has criticised China\u2019s response to the Ukraine war, with some warning that a Russian victory would colour China\u2019s actions towards Taiwan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BEIJING, China Beijing has strongly denied US claims that China was considering arming Russia in its war against Ukraine, as it reiterated a call for dialogue to end the conflict. A Chinese spokesperson said the US is in no position to make demands after US top diplomat Anthony Blinken warned Beijing against providing weapons to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":314984,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-314963","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n