Det ble lagt merke til at Kina avsto fra å stemme over resolusjonen Sikkerhetsrådet som fordømte invasjonen av Krim (Russland brukte sitt veto). Det ble tolket som at Kina i det minste ikke støtter Russland.

Men nå advarer Kinas ambassadør i Tyskland mot å vedta sanksjoner.

EU ble enig om en pakke onsdag, og forbundskansler Angela Merkel holdt en meget skarp tale i Forbundsdagen torsdag. EU er på samme noteark som USA.

Men ikke Kina.

In an interview with Reuters days before the European Union is threatening to impose its first sanctions on Russia since the Cold War, ambassador Shi Mingde issued the strongest warning against such measures by any top Chinese official to date.

«We don’t see any point in sanctions,» Shi said. «Sanctions could lead to retaliatory action, and that would trigger a spiral with unforeseeable consequences. We don’t want this.»

But Shi urged patience, saying the door for talks should remain open even after a referendum on Sunday in which Ukraine’s southern region of Crimea could vote to secede and join Russia. Merkel and other western leaders have denounced the referendum as illegal and demanded that it be canceled.

«We still see a chance to avoid an escalation. The door to talks is still open. We should use this possibility, also after the referendum,» Shi said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who will visit Berlin and other European capitals later this month, held separate phone calls on the Ukraine crisis with Merkel and U.S. PresidentBarack Obama earlier this week.

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/13/us-ukraine-crisis-china-idUSBREA2C0PB20140313