Top US officials slam China over its ‘wrong direction’ helping Russia fight Ukraine

More sanctions coming to ‘tighten the screws’ on Beijing if it does not reconsider its supplying Moscow with material aid in war effort

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Ukrainian infantrymen mobilised at an unspecified location not far from the front line in the Donetsk region on Friday. Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:05am, 20 Jul 2024Updated: 7:55am, 20 Jul 2024

Senior US officials on Friday warned that Beijing was going in the “wrong direction” by supplying material aid to Moscow for its Ukraine war efforts and would likely face more sanctions soon if it did not reconsider its membership on “team Russia”.

“We have been prepared to tighten the screws to apply sanctions against specific entities and individuals, including in China,” said National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, speaking at the Aspen Security Forum in the US state of Colorado.

“You can expect to see additional sanctions, measures as we watch this picture continue to evolve in the coming weeks.”

Sullivan did not detail specific steps but said the administration of US President Joe Biden had “nearly unprecedented” power financially to take on its adversaries, including measures against Chinese banks.

“Writ large, the picture is not pretty. China continues to be a major supplier of dual-use items to Russia’s war machine,” he added.

“It’s the instruments that go into the weapons that are killing Ukrainians and oppressing Ukraine. And we think China should stop because we think it is profoundly outside the bounds of decent conduct by nation states.”