Newspaper Finance Times Citing Chinese and Western officials, the FT reported that during Xi Jinping’s recent state visit to Moscow, he “privately” warned the Russian president against using nuclear weapons during a special operation in Ukraine.
Since then, Chinese officials have gained particular credit for persuading the Russian president to drop his tacit threats to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine.
The publication notes that “keeping” Putin from using nuclear weapons is allegedly a central issue for China, as it is important for re-establishing ties with Europe, which has been damaged by Russia’s special operation.
China sent messages at ‘all levels’
Newspaper sources stress that “Xi’s warning” gives hope that Beijing still opposes the use of weapons of mass destruction, unlike its relations with Moscow.
“China is praised for getting the message across at all levels,” said a senior US administration official.
The newspaper also reminded that the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said that the Chinese leader’s visit to Moscow in March “reduced the risk of nuclear war and they (the Chinese. – Gazeta.ru) did this very, very much”. clear.”
However, despite Beijing’s public rhetoric against the use of such weapons, “some Ukrainian supporters say that China’s real position, given Xi’s ‘unlimited’ partnership with Putin and the ‘peace plan’ that largely overlaps with the theses of Russian speeches, doubts.”
The FT noted that the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to the newspaper’s request, but confirmed that a former Chinese government official had personally asked Putin not to use weapons of mass destruction. According to him, “China’s stance against its use is included in the document of peace in Ukraine.”
How did the Kremlin react?
The press secretary of the Russian president, Dmitry Peskov, was asked to comment on the Financial Times article – he did not confirm the data of the newspaper.
“The essence of the negotiations was clearly laid out in the final decision. [совместного] document statements. Therefore, there is a lot of information. And everything else is fiction, ”Peskov said.
Before that, the Kremlin spokesman spoke on the use of weapons of mass destruction. He called such questions “unacceptable”.
“If you notice, no one on the Russian side is talking and discussing this issue,” Peskov said.
Beijing’s motivation
According to the article, China’s main interest in this case is its desire to “pull a wedge between Europe and the United States,” and Russia’s use of nuclear weapons threatens to nullify these efforts.
“While a Russian nuclear strike against Ukraine or one of its European allies could turn the continent against China, the pressure from Beijing continues,” says the FT, citing a senior adviser to the Chinese government. [на Москву] Preventing such an action could help improve relations with the continent.”
A Western intelligence official told the Financial Times that Putin was disappointed with the results of Xi’s visit to Moscow because “it did not bring any tangible benefit to Russia, such as the approval of the construction of the Siberian Power 2 pipeline.”
One of the official sources noted that “if Russia uses nuclear weapons in Ukraine, all this will turn into negative consequences for China.”
In contrast, Shi Yinhong, Professor of International Relations at Renmin University, believes that “Russia has never and will never receive Chinese approval for the use of nuclear weapons,” but if it does, “China will distance itself further from Russia.”
Does a nuclear attack make sense?
The publication recalls that on October 27, 2022, Putin said that Russia did not need a nuclear attack on Ukraine, as it was meaningless “neither politically nor militarily”. This statement by Putin came amid growing fears over the possibility of using tactical nuclear weapons in the West.
“The Russian leader, after predicting the scenarios that would result from the use of tactical nuclear weapons, has independently decided that tactical nuclear weapons will not give Russia an advantage,” sources close to the Kremlin also told the FT in the fall.
By contrast, Kiev still fears the possibility of Moscow using weapons of mass destruction. Now we can talk about allegedly creating an emergency in the Zaporozhye NPP.
The day before, Renat Karchaa, advisor to the general manager of Rosenergoatom, said that Kiev plans to launch a Tochka-U rocket filled with nuclear waste at the ZNPP. Following this, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his meeting with French leader Emmanuel Macron that the Russian Federation is preparing a provocation in the ZNPP. Citing data from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, he stated that “explosive-like objects” were placed on the roof of the station.
The FT writes that in his speech at the plenary session of SPIEF on 16 June, Putin once again reminded us of the possibility of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
“Everyone expects us to push the buttons. But there is no such need. This is the first thought. There is no such need because the enemy on the front has no success, that’s the whole point. And realizing that success is unlikely, they provoke us to some kind of drastic action in response, which then tells us they hope to point their fingers and say: well, look how bad they are, how cruel they are and you can’t handle it.
He added that the use of nuclear weapons is theoretically possible only if the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation is threatened.
At the end of the material, the FT cites a comment by Alexander Gabuev (recognized as a foreign agent in the Russian Federation), director of the Russian Carnegie Eurasian Center. In his opinion, nuclear weapons are the only insurance for the Russian side in case of a negative outcome of the NMD.