Ukraine war: US sanctions on China for supporting Russia are not needed yet, says Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen
- ‘We would be very concerned if they were to supply weapons to Russia, or to try to evade the sanctions put in place. We don’t see that happening at this point’
- US Treasury secretary adds that the US is talking to China ‘privately and quietly’
The United States has no immediate plans to sanction China over the war in Ukraine because Beijing has so far not provided military support to Moscow, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Friday.
“I don’t think that that’s necessary or appropriate at this point,” Yellen said in an interview on CNBC. “Senior administration officials are talking privately and quietly with China to make sure that they understand our position.”
The comments were the latest in Washington’s pressure campaign against Beijing over its stance on the war in Ukraine.
Chinese officials have pointedly refused to condemn Russia for invading its neighbour, or acknowledge the attack as an invasion at all.
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Russia attacked its neighbour just weeks after Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a “no limits” partnership for their countries, leading to many questions in Washington and around the world about how much Xi knew in advance about Putin’s plans to invade.