Beijing denied a Financial Times report on the eve of Putin’s arrival in China for a two-day summit with Xi, amid signs of Russia’s economic and military wear and tear in the conflict
China denied on Tuesday (19) that President Xi Jinping said, in a meeting with United States President Donald Trump, that Vladimir Putin might “regret” the invasion of Ukraine.
The statement attributed to Xi was published by Financial Times on the eve of the Russian leader’s arrival in Beijing for a two-day summit.
Asked about the report, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun rejected the version.
“The information mentioned does not correspond to the facts and is completely fabricated out of nowhere,” he said at a press conference.
According to the Financial TimesXi reportedly made the comment during talks between the US and Chinese delegations in Beijing last week, when Trump visited the Chinese capital.
Beijing’s formal denial comes precisely on the day that Putin arrives in Beijing for his own meeting with Xi, a gesture that reinforces Moscow’s attempt to show that it maintains a solid diplomatic axis with China despite the isolation imposed by Western sanctions.
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Before the trip, Putin said Russia and China were ready to “support each other” on a wide range of issues, including “national unity” and “protection of sovereignty.”
