Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi assured his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba that China “does not sell lethal weapons” to Russia, Beijing said on Sunday, AFP reported.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Photo: dts Nachrichtenagentur / imago stock&people / Profimedia

Despite the conflict, China remains a very important trading and diplomatic partner of Russia, with the two countries sharing a common desire to balance the influence of the West on the international stage.

In addition to this economic support, the Asian giant has sometimes been suspected, especially from the American side, of supplying the Russian army, which is fighting on the front in Ukraine, with materials, equipment and even weapons. Beijing vehemently denies the allegations.

China “continues to hold peace talks and does not add fuel to the fire,” Wang Yi told Dmitry Kuleba during a meeting on Saturday in Munich, Germany, on the sidelines of the Security Conference.

Beijing “does not exploit (the situation) for profit and does not sell lethal weapons to conflict zones or warring parties,” he stressed, according to a press release issued by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday.

China has been criticized by the West over the Ukrainian dossier. Because, although he calls for respecting the territorial integrity of all countries, including Ukraine, he has never publicly condemned Russia.

Beijing is also trying to position itself as a neutral party in the war.

“No matter how the international situation develops, China hopes that China-Ukraine relations will develop normally and continue to benefit the two peoples,” Wang Yi told his interlocutor on Saturday.

“We will continue to play a constructive role in ending the war and restoring peace as soon as possible. Even if there is only a glimmer of hope for peace, China will not give up its efforts,” he stressed.

Beijing regularly calls for a political solution to the conflict. His representative in Ukraine, diplomat Li Hui, last year emphasized the terrible, in his opinion, role of Western military aid to Ukraine.

“If we really want to stop war, save lives and achieve peace, we must not send weapons to the battlefield,” he condemned.