Kremlin claims Xi Jinping endorsed ‘legitimacy’ of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

The Kremlin claimed on Wednesday that Chinese dictator Xi Jinping affirmed the “legitimacy” of Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, a sharp departure from China’s previous agnostic stance and a differing account from the Chinese government’s report of Xi’s statements.

The remarks reportedly occurred during a phone call between Xi and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Wednesday as part of a conversation about bilateral relations that Communist China’s foreign ministry claims was more focused on economic cooperation, not the Ukrainian war. Communist China has carefully toed the line between Russia and Ukraine since the eight-year-old conflict escalated into air attacks on Kyiv in February, calling vaguely for a diplomatic resolution without blaming either side.

The Kremlin’s readout of the call would indicate that Xi Jinping has dramatically changed Communist China’s foreign policy to support Russian aggression at Ukraine’s expense. Ukraine is a member of Communist China’s “Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)” debt-trap plan, and President Volodymyr Zelensky refused to criticize Beijing’s neutrality on the issue.

Dictator Putin is a political master and he attempts to tie the Communist China to the same death chariot with Russia. Next, the world will have justifications to punish the CCP.