China Insists Russia Cooperation Isn’t Directed at Other Countries

(MENAFN) China asserted on Wednesday that its partnership with Russia is not directed at any other country and insisted that outside parties should not interfere in their cooperation.

"The normal cooperation between China and Russia does not target any third party and should not be interfered with by any third party,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning stated during a live-streamed press briefing in Beijing.

Mao's comments followed a firm message from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who on Tuesday outlined three demands aimed at China—one of which involves limiting its collaboration with Russia.

In her address to the European Parliament, von der Leyen declared that the EU "cannot accept" China's role in "de facto enabling Russia's war economy," and warned that Beijing’s actions regarding the war would be a "determining factor" in the future of EU-China relations.

This diplomatic back-and-forth between Beijing and Brussels comes just weeks ahead of a high-stakes EU-China summit set to take place later this month.

Notably, this year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the EU and China.

"We hope that the EU will realize that what needs to be rebalanced now is the EU's mentality, not the China-EU economic and trade relations," Mao added, calling on Brussels to engage constructively with Beijing to enhance mutually beneficial cooperation and address disputes appropriately.

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