US officials have claimed president Joe Biden's administration was betrayed by China after holding intelligence meetings about Russia's military buildup.
Western leaders became wary of a potential invasion by Russia as forces built up on the border of Ukraine in the months before Vladimir Putin announced an invasion, but repeated warnings from officials were not enough to stop troops from crossing the border on Thursday, February 24.
Senior Biden administration officials are said to have held six urgent meetings with top Chinese officials over a period of three months prior to the invasion, during which Americans are said to have presented intelligence regarding Russia's troop build up around Ukraine and urged China to tell Russia not to invade.
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However, according to the officials cited by The New York Times, Chinese officials including the foreign minister and the ambassador to the United States are said to have brushed off the warnings, saying they did not think an invasion was on the cards.
Following one of the meetings in December, US officials received intelligence which indicated Beijing had shared the information revealed in the meeting with Moscow. The Chinese are said to have told the Russians that the US was trying to sow discord, and that China would not try to impede on Russian plans and actions.
News of the meetings between Chinese and American officials, which comes from senior administration officials with knowledge of the conversations, indicates how the Biden administration sought to use intelligence findings and diplomacy to try and persuade China to prevent an invasion of Ukraine, and how China still opted to side with Russia.
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In a call on Friday, February 25, one day after Russia began its attack, Putin reportedly told Chinese premier Xi Jinping that both the US and Nato had ignored his 'reasonable' security concerns and had reneged on their commitments, according to a readout of the call released by the Chinese state news media and cited by The Times.
Xi is said to have reiterated China’s public position on the importance of respecting both the 'legitimate security concerns' and the 'sovereignty and territorial integrity' of all countries. When Putin told Xi that Russia was willing to negotiate with Ukraine, Xi reportedly said China would support such a move.
Talks between Biden's administration and China began after President Biden and Xi held a video summit on November 15 in which they acknowledged challenges in the relationship between their nations, but agreed to try and work together on issues of common interest.
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Topics: Joe Biden, US News, World News, Vladimir Putin, China, Russia, Ukraine
Emily Brown