Ukraine-Russia crisis tests Beijing’s desire to maintain ‘normal trade’ with both

‘We hope they can reach peace’, commerce minister says, as impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war begin to emerge on the world’s second-largest economy

Russia and Ukraine are both important trading partners with China, and Beijing made a deal with Kyiv last year after it withdrew its call to give UN human rights chief access to Xinjiang

Reading Time:3 minutes

Workers unload goods from a truck near a trading centre known as the Russian Market in Beijing on Tuesday. China says it hopes to maintain normal trade relations with both Ukraine and Russia. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 8:15pm, 1 Mar 2022Updated: 1:14pm, 9 Mar 2022

China hopes to maintain normal trade with both Russia and Ukraine, according to Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, as the worsening crisis in Ukraine serves as a test for how Beijing manages ties with its trading partners.

“[Russia and Ukraine] are in talks now. We hope they can reach peace, and we hope to promote our normal trade,” Wang told reporters on the sidelines of a press conference in Beijing on Tuesday.

The comments came as Beijing has tried to walk a diplomatic tightrope between Moscow and Kyiv without taking sides over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

China is the largest trading partner of both Russia and Ukraine, and the values of both China-Russia and China-Ukraine trade in goods hit record highs in 2021. Russia is an important energy supplier for China, while Beijing is also a major buyer of Ukraine corn and wheat.

Chinese authorities have not condemned its invasion, nor has Beijing made any direct endorsement of Russia’s invasion. Instead, China has called for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.