IRIA News

U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met Chinese Communist Party Politburo Member Yang Jiechi in Rome, Italy, to discuss bilateral relations and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The meeting between the officials of the U.S. and China was long-planned following U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s virtual meeting in November 2021.

The U.S. and Chinese officials had candid, in-depth, and constructive discussions on bilateral relations and both sides agreed to jointly implement the consensus reached by the presidents of the U.S. and China, and manage differences.

During the seven-hour meeting, the Chinese diplomat explained Beijing’s position on the ongoing situation in Ukraine and called on the international community to jointly support the Russia-Ukraine peace talks.

Chinese top diplomat Yang called all parties to exercise maximum restraint, protect civilians and prevent a large-scale humanitarian crisis. Yang also highlighted that China has provided emergency humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, and will continue its efforts to bring peace.

Yang restated that China’s position that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations must be respected and that the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter must be observed. “China firmly opposes any words and deeds that spread malicious information,” Yang added.

During the meeting, the officials of both countries also discussed several international and regional issues, including Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong issues, the ongoing situation in Afghanistan, as well as North Korea and Iran’s nuclear issues.

Yang Jiechi explained to the U.S. side that China’s solemn position on issues related to Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, stressing that these issues involve China’s core interests. Yang added that China will not allow any foreign interference in its internal affairs and any attempt to use these issues to suppress China will fail.

According to the White House statement, “the two officials covered the whole range of issues in the U.S.-China relationship. They had an extensive conversation on Russia/Ukraine, with the National Security Advisor [Sullivan] laying out where we are, how we got here, and what the risks are that we see lying ahead.”

The meeting between the U.S. and Chinese senior officials sent a positive signal to the world that the two major powers are committed to working together at a turbulent time, however, both countries have different positions on the Ukraine crisis and several key international issues.

Earlier, the U.S. National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horn said in a written statement that the meeting’s agenda will include “ongoing efforts to manage the competition between our two countries and… the impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine on regional and global security.”

After the talks, the White House released a brief statement saying U.S. National Security Advisor Sullivan had raised a “range of issues in U.S.-China relations, with substantial discussion of Russia’s war against Ukraine.”

After the meeting, U.S. Department of State spokesperson Ned Price said, “The national security adviser and our delegation raised directly and very clearly our concerns about the [People’s Republic of China] PRC’s support to Russia in the wake of the invasion, and the implications that any such support would have for the PRC’s relationship not only with us, but for its relationships around the world.”

Ahead of the meeting, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin is “communicating directly and privately to Beijing. There will absolutely be consequences for sanctions evasion efforts or support to Russia”.

U.S. National Security Advisor Sullivan also said that “We will not allow anything to go forward and won’t allow there to be a lifeline to Russia from these economic sanctions from any country, anywhere in the world.”

In response to the allegations, Chinese Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that the U.S. has been spreading complete disinformation and baseless allegations. According to Zhao, China’s stance over the whole situation in Ukraine has always been consistent and concrete. China aims to play a constructive role in promoting peace talks rather than promoting military confrontation.

Separately, Moscow said on March 14 that Russian forces are capable of taking control of Ukraine and have sufficient military equipment to fulfill its operation in Ukraine without China’s help.

In response to the U.S. officials’ statement regarding Russia asking China for military equipment, Russian President’s Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said: “No. Russia possesses its own independent potential to continue the operation. As we said, it is going according to plan and will be completed on time and in full.”