Xi Jinping Warns Putin Against Nuclear Attack On Ukraine

It was a personal warning.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping personally warned Russian President Vladimir Putin about the inadmissibility of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

According to Financial Times sources among Western and Chinese officials, he delivered the message during a state visit to Moscow in March this year.

“The Chinese are taking credit for sending the message at every level,” a senior US administration official said.

At the same time, according to a representative of the Western intelligence service, Putin was disappointed with the visit of Xi Jinping, since the visit did not bring any benefits to Russia. The Chinese leader refused to sign an agreement on constructing the Power of Siberia-2 gas pipeline and Chinese officials have credited themselves with making progress in persuading Putin to abandon veiled threats to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine.

If Russia uses nuclear weapons during the war in Ukraine, "it will all turn out to be a minus for China," one of the officials explained. This move could turn the EU against Beijing, while continued Chinese pressure on Moscow on this issue helps improve relations with Europe.

In particular, after Xi's visit to Moscow, Josep Borrell, head of European diplomacy, said that they "reduce the risk of nuclear war and have made it very clear."

"Russia has never received and will never receive Chinese approval for the use of nuclear weapons," said Shi Yinhong, professor at the School of International Studies of Renmin University in Beijing. According to him, if Putin uses nukes against Ukraine, China will further distance itself from Russia.

In turn, Putin assured in October last year that a tactical nuclear strike on Ukraine did not make any "political or military sense". According to sources close to the Kremlin, the Russian leader himself came to this conclusion after simulating the use of nuclear weapons, which could show that the captured territories of Ukraine would turn into an irradiated wasteland in this case, but this would not help Russian troops to advance.

Meanwhile, Kyiv warns that Russia could instead provoke an accident at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, the largest plant in Europe, which the Russian army seized in March 2022.

After the start of Ukraine's counteroffensive, Putin announced the transfer of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, but he also said that there was "no need" for the use of nuclear weapons, since Russian troops were holding back the offensive of the Ukrainian forces.

However, this statement indicated that even China might not be able to deter Putin, said Alexander Gabuev, the director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. "Nuclear weapons are Putin's ultimate insurance against catastrophic defeat in this war," he explained.