© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A central processing unit (CPU) semiconductor chip is pictured between the Chinese and U.S. flags, in this illustrative image taken February 17, 2023. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration
By Trevor Hunnicutt and Michael Martina
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States is sounding close allies about the possibility of imposing new sanctions on China if Beijing provides Russia with military support for its war in Ukraine, according to four US officials and other sources.
The consultations, which are still in a preliminary stage, aim to garner support from a range of countries, especially those in the wealthy Group of 7 (G7), to coordinate support for any possible restrictions.
It was not clear what specific sanctions Washington would propose. The conversations have not been previously disclosed.
The White House and the US Treasury Department, a leading agency in imposing sanctions, declined to comment.
Washington and its allies have said in recent weeks that China was considering providing weapons to Russia, which Beijing denies. Aides to US President Joe Biden have not publicly provided evidence.
They also directly warned China against doing so, including in meetings between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, as well as during a February 18 in-person meeting between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Chinese top diplomat Wang Yi on the sidelines of a global security conference in Munich.
The Biden administration’s initial steps to counter Chinese support for Russia included informal outreach at the diplomatic and staff levels, including the Treasury Department, sources familiar with the matter said.
They said the officials were laying the groundwork for possible action against Beijing with the core group of countries most supportive of sanctions imposed on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine a year ago.
INTELLIGENCE
A country official consulted by Washington said they had seen only little intelligence to support claims that China was considering possible military assistance to Russia. However, a US official said they were providing detailed intelligence reports to allies.
China’s role in the Russia-Ukraine war is expected to be one of the topics when Biden meets German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the White House on Friday. Before that, in New Delhi on Wednesday and Thursday, the war will be discussed by the foreign ministers of dozens of countries, including Russia, China and the United States.
Last week, China issued a 12-point document calling for a comprehensive ceasefire that was met with skepticism in the West.
Washington’s initial outreach on the sanctions has yet to lead to broad agreement on any specific measures, the sources said.
One source said the administration wanted to first float the idea of coordinated sanctions and “hold arm’s length” in case shipments to Russia are detected from China, which declared an “unlimited” partnership shortly before the February 24 invasion. past. .
“On the G7 front, I think there is real awareness,” a second source said, but added that detailed China-focused measures had not yet been put in place.
COULD CHINA TILT CONFLICT?
The Ukraine conflict has turned into trench warfare. With Russia running out of ammunition, Ukraine and its supporters fear supplies from China could tip the conflict in Russia’s favor.
As part of a related diplomatic push, Washington gained language in a February 24 G7 statement to mark the first anniversary of the war that called on “third countries” to “stop providing material support to Russia’s war or face severe costs.”
Although the statement did not mention China by name, the United States has imposed new sanctions on individuals and companies accused of helping Russia evade sanctions. The measures included export restrictions for companies in China and elsewhere that will prevent them from buying items such as semiconductors.
“We have tried to signal very clearly, both privately in Munich and publicly, our concerns,” Daniel Kritenbrink, the top US diplomat for East Asia, told Congress this week. “We’ve talked about the implications and the consequences if they did. And we also know that many of our like-minded partners share those concerns.”
Among the challenges the United States faces in imposing sanctions on China, the world’s second-largest economy, is its full integration into major economies in Europe and Asia, complicating talks. US allies, from Germany to South Korea, are reluctant to alienate China.
Anthony Ruggiero, an expert on sanctions for former President Donald Trump, said the Biden administration has leeway to financially restrain private players inside China and that doing so could discourage the government and banks from providing more support.
“Then the administration can send messages to China publicly and privately, the latter being more explicit, that the United States will escalate sanctions to include targeting Chinese banks with the full range of options available,” Ruggiero said, now with the Foundation. Group for the Defense of Democracies.
Washington should make China choose between accessing the US financial system or helping Russia’s war, Ruggiero said, citing the focus of sanctions on Iran and North Korea.