The Sullivan meeting, described by a senior administration official as “intense” and “candid,” came amid reports that President Biden is considering a trip to Europe in the coming weeks to rally and reassure allies, a visit that will follow the vice president’s trip. Harris to Poland and Romania last week. And Congressional leaders have announced that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will deliver a virtual address to Congress on Wednesday, an event likely to resonate deeply.
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Biden officials declined to disclose any specific warnings Sullivan might have conveyed to the Chinese regarding Russia’s offer of aid, but a senior administration official said the United States was “deeply concerned about China’s rapprochement with Russia at this time” and that Sullivan was “direct with the Chinese about “potential consequences and consequences of certain actions”. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive issues during a phone call with reporters.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday that the implications for China would be “significant.” that “we have informed Beijing that we will not stand by and allow any country to compensate Russia for its losses from economic sanctions.”
In a telephone conversation with reporters, a senior administration official declined to say whether the administration believes China has already provided military or financial assistance to Russia.
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In a statement released after the meeting, Chinese officials said Yang had made it clear that Beijing was unhappy with the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
“Yang Jiechi pointed out that the situation in Ukraine today has reached a stage that the Chinese side does not want to see,” the statement said. “China has always advocated respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries and upholding the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.”
However, the statement did not condemn Russia, which unilaterally launched the invasion, stating that “it is necessary to respond to the reasonable concerns of all parties.”
Earlier, Chinese government spokesman Zhao Lijian denied reports that Russia had turned to China for military and economic assistance, calling them “false information” that is “neither responsible nor ethical,” and added: “Recently, the United States has been circulating false information against China on the Ukrainian issue with sinister intentions.”
At Monday’s meeting, Sullivan and Yang also discussed North Korea and the importance of keeping lines of communication open between their two countries, officials said.
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Asked about a possible Biden trip to Europe, first reported by NBC News, Psaki said the administration has yet to make a final decision, but signaled that any such visit would require strengthening NATO and other Western countries.
“Of course, we are working closely with our NATO partners and European allies … on the next steps in diplomacy – whether it be providing additional humanitarian or security assistance or a mechanism for future negotiations,” Psaki said.
Monday’s discussions — the result of Biden’s Nov. 15 virtual meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping — took place at Rome’s Waldorf Astoria, an isolated hotel favored by politicians and officials visiting from Washington. Journalists were not allowed.
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In the months leading up to the Russian invasion, Beijing and Moscow drew closer, forming a nascent alliance as Biden sought to unite the world’s democracies into a coalition against authoritarianism. But the confusion and lethality of the invasion put China in a delicate position given its emphasis on stability and continuity.
Michele Geraci, a former Italian deputy secretary of state who lives part-time in Shanghai, said he saw little incentive for China to directly support Russia. “For China, this war is a pain,” Geraci said. “China needs a stable world so that it can continue to develop its own economy. For them, this is a devastating event.”
Geraci added that Chinese officials he knows hoped Beijing could play a mediating role between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Zelensky. “To sit between Putin and Zelensky, you have to be neutral,” he said.
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The meeting between Sullivan and Young came after the Pentagon concluded that Russia had attacked the International Peace and Security Center, a Ukrainian military facility about 12 miles from the border with Poland, with long-range bomber-launched cruise missiles on Sunday. Poland is a NATO country and US troops were deployed to the Ukrainian facility as recently as last month before the Pentagon pulled them out as it became clear that Russia was about to invade.
According to Ukrainian authorities, at least 35 people were killed in the attack and 134 others were injured. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Monday that several buildings at the training center were hit. A senior U.S. Department of Defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with ground rules set by the Pentagon, said that “more than a couple dozen” missiles were involved and that the bombers were in Russian airspace at the time of launch.
Kirby said the Pentagon does not view the missile salvo as an attempt to “stalk” U.S. arms shipments to Ukraine that come under the cloak of secrecy from neighboring European countries. “I’ll just tell you that we have several ways to put security assistance in the hands of the Ukrainians,” Kirby said. “It wasn’t one of them.
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A senior Defense Department official, speaking at a separate Pentagon briefing, said the Russian offensive against major cities is still stalled on many fronts, forcing the Russians to attack from a distance with artillery, missiles and other long-range weapons. These cities include the capital Kyiv; the northeastern city of Kharkiv; and the port city of Mariupol to the south.
“Obviously they are increasing the amount of long-range fires that they are applying to these cities, these population centers that are sustaining,” the official said.
And in Ukraine, carnage and chaos continued to accumulate.
Shells believed to be Russian hit a nine-story residential building in Kiev’s Obolon district around 6 a.m., causing frightened civilians to flee the building and firefighters rushing to the scene. Red Cross volunteers who arrived at the scene said at least one person had died.
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In Mariupol, which was isolated and besieged by Russian troops for several days, more than 160 vehicles with civilians were able to leave the city. They flew out along a previously established humanitarian corridor and headed north to the city of Zaporozhye, on the Dnieper River, the Mariupol City Council said in a statement. A council statement released on Monday afternoon said a ceasefire was being observed along the humanitarian corridor.
Russian and Ukrainian officials announced on Monday that they have agreed on 11 evacuation routes from Mariupol, with the corridors opening at 10 am every day. It was not clear if they were working effectively and if Russia, which dropped explosives on previously established humanitarian corridors, was complying with the agreement.
Among those killed in Mariupol was a pregnant woman, pictured in an Associated Press photograph after a bomb exploded at a maternity hospital last week. On Monday, the AP reported that she and her unborn child subsequently died as the mother suffered from a crushed pelvis and detached hip.
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A food and medicine truck convoy bound for Mariupol was again diverted by heavy fighting on Monday, in the latest setback in helping trapped residents.
The convoy, which could also give residents a chance to escape, remains at a dead end about 50 miles southeast of Mariupol, near Berdyansk, the Mariupol city council said in a statement. The vehicles were originally expected to arrive Sunday afternoon, but Russian forces continued to interfere with them and violate the ceasefire agreement, a city official said.
As the violence continued, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) announced in a letter to their colleagues that Zelensky would deliver a virtual address to members of Congress on Wednesday morning. . Zelensky addressed other national legislatures, usually to thunderous applause.
“Congress remains unwavering in our commitment to stand by Ukraine as it faces Putin’s brutal and diabolical aggression and pass legislation that will cripple and isolate the Russian economy and provide humanitarian, security and economic assistance to Ukraine,” they said. Pelosi and Schumer in their statement. letter.
Kim Bellwer, Miriam Berger, Karim Faheem, Jennifer Hassan, Ellen Nakashima, Siobhan O’Grady, David Stern, Annabelle Timsit, and Reis Tebo contributed to this report.