According to reports in the US media citing unnamed government officials, Russia has asked China for military equipment and support, as well as economic assistance, as global sanctions and private sector abandonment begin to bite.
The initial reports did not specify the types of weapons Russia was seeking or China’s response, but they did draw warnings from the US that if China agreed, it would face “consequences.” Subsequent reports, citing US diplomatic cables to allies, claimed that Russia had requested equipment such as drones, armored vehicles, and surface-to-air missiles, and that China had indicated a willingness to cooperate.
Chinese officials reacted angrily, dismissing the allegations as malicious disinformation. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, Liu Pengyu, said he’d never heard of such a request.
