Beijing on Friday said it “strongly opposes” attempts to impose economic pressure on China, after U.S. President Donald Trump urged European leaders to target Beijing over its stance on the war in Ukraine.
China has avoided condemning Russia’s invasion or demanding a troop withdrawal, while many of Kyiv’s allies believe Beijing has provided Moscow with indirect support. Chinese officials maintain the country is a neutral party, calling for peace talks but blaming the West for fueling the conflict by supplying weapons to Ukraine.
During a video conference with European leaders in Paris on Thursday, Trump urged them to pressure Beijing and halt purchases of Russian oil “funding the war,” according to a senior White House official.
Responding to the remarks, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Beijing was “neither creator of this crisis nor a party to it.” He added: “We firmly oppose the practice of constantly dragging China into the matter, and we strongly oppose the imposition of so-called economic pressure on China.”
Beijing’s ties with Moscow have grown closer since both countries declared a “no limits partnership” shortly before Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. On Wednesday, President Xi Jinping stood alongside Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at a military parade marking 80 years since the end of World War II — an image criticized by the European Union’s top diplomat.
China defended the gathering, saying the presence of “foreign guests” was to “work together with peace-loving countries and peoples to remember history.” When pressed on whether Beijing viewed Russia as a “peace-loving country,” Guo declined to give a direct answer.
