The US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinkenassured this Monday that although China is not supplying arms and ammunition to Russia Yes, it is providing “incalculable support” to the Russian defense industry through the sale of microelectronics, machine tools and optics.
“It is fair to say that China does not directly supply Russia with weapons, missiles and ammunition. Iran is doing it. North Korea is doing it,” the head of US diplomacy said in a conversation on the sidelines of the session special event of the World Economic Forum (WEF), held in Saudi Arabia.
However, Blinken warned that what the Asian giant is doing is “providing incalculable support to Russia’s defense industrial base,” which in his opinion is alleviating the “massive pressure” that has been exerted against Moscow. through sanctions, export controls and other measures.
“If you look at what Russia has done over the last year, in terms of production of munitions, missiles, tanks and armored vehicles, it has produced them at a faster rate than at any other time in its modern history, even during the Cold War“Blinken said.
He alleged that this has been possible because Russia “It is receiving massive inputs of machine tools, microelectronics and optics, mostly from China.”
“These are dual-use items, but We know very clearly where many of them end up and this raises problems that allow Russia to continue its aggression against Ukraine. Therefore, he is perpetuating a war that China says it would like to see come to an end, as would all of us,” Blinken denounced.
He recalled that the increase in Russia’s production capacities is something that Europe is “deeply concerned about turning against it” once the war in Ukraine ends.
Blinken insisted before the authorities of the oil-producing countries of the Arabian Peninsula that they be ready to limit the power that Iran seeks to exercise over the region, evidenced after the bombing of Israel: “This attack highlights the serious and growing threat from Iran, but also the imperative to work together for an integrated defense”the American official told the ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council (CCG) meeting in Riyadh, in reference to the recent attack with more than 300 missiles and drones that the Persian regime launched in mid-April.
At the meeting, which was attended by the heads of diplomats of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and OmanBlinken also explained his country’s efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and increase aid to civilians of the Palestinian enclave.
The trip to the Middle East comes shortly after Blinken raised his concerns with the Chinese authorities themselves about the role that Beijing’s industry plays in the conflicts that have put the world on the brink of a generalized conflict with unforeseeable consequences.
The Secretary of State expressed on Friday his concern to China over support for Russia, saying that Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine depended on support from Beijing. “Russia would have difficulties in Ukraine without China’s support“, he indicated in a press conference after the meeting with Xi.
With information from EFE, AFP and Reuters
