Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Sanctions Against Moscow Should Serve As Example For China's Xi Jinping, Says US

On the Bucha killings, China called civilian deaths in the Ukrainian town as deeply disturbing but refused to assign blame "before a conclusion of the investigation is drawn."

Joe Biden & Xi Jinping (Getty Images)

New Delhi: US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman on Wednesday said that sanctions imposed on Russia should give China a "good understanding" of the consequences that it could face if it provides material support to Moscow.

She said the "range of sanctions" and export controls among US allies against President Vladimir Putin, Russia's economy, and oligarchs, should serve as an example for China's Xi Jinping.

"It gives President Xi, I think, a pretty good understanding of what might come his way should he, in fact, support Putin in any material fashion," Wendy Sherman said, as quoted by news agency Reuters.

At a House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, US Deputy Secretary of State asserted that Beijing should "take away the right lessons" from the coordinated Western response over Ukraine and added that any steps by China to seize the democratically governed island of Taiwan by force would not be acceptable.

"We hope that the PRC (People's Republic of China) understands that any such action would see a response from the international community, not just from the United States," she stated.

So far, China has not condemned the Russian offensive in Ukraine or called it an invasion. It has even criticised Western sanctions on Moscow, even as a senior Chinese diplomat had last week said that Beijing is not deliberately circumventing those sanctions.

According to US Deputy Secretary of State, China is displaying signs of being "conflicted" over being closely linked to Russia

"That's not to say they don't see Russia as a partner. I'm not naive. They do. But they have also been public to say it is not an alliance," Sherman said, as quoted by Reuters.

Notably, China on Wednesday said that images of civilian deaths in the Ukrainian town of Bucha were deeply disturbing but refused to assign blame "before a conclusion of the investigation is drawn."

In March, US President Joe Biden had warned his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping of "consequences" if any material support is provided to help Russia deal with Western sanctions or in case of military assistance.

Biden later also said that Beijing knows its economic future is tied to the West, not Russia.

Beijing blames Washington and NATO for provoking the conflict in Ukraine by sending arms to Kyiv.