Chinese President Xi Jinping personally cautioned Russian leader Vladimir Putin against using nuclear weapons in Ukraine during a state visit to Moscow in March, Chinese officials have claimed.
Beijing in recent years has made moves to strengthen its bond with the Kremlin, with the two parties agreeing a ‘no limits’ partnership just prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Xi then vowed last summer to support Russia’s ‘sovereignty and security’ in the face of Western pressure, despite Putin having ordered his troops to invade a sovereign nation, and moved to increase economic cooperation with Putin in a move that drew widespread condemnation from Western officials.