Retired four-star Army Gen. Jack Keane said Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s Feb. 19 warning that China may send deadly help to Russia could prompt Beijing to abandon such preparations.
“And I think coming out and exposing—and I would go further and tell them—what we think they are attempting to provide, China will pull back, likely, after that public exposure,” the retired general said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Keane said China and Russia are “strategic partners” and said it’s like “China wants Russia to succeed” in their battle with Ukraine.
“Remember, China has not condemned the invasion. They have not condemned that it’s illegal. They have not come out and spoken against genocide and war crimes that are being committed,” Keane said.
“Certainly, China has been buying as much Russian oil as they possibly can and helping them with the sanctions that are imposed on them.”
“We welcome the Chinese announcement that they want peace because that’s what we always want to pursue in situations like this. But we also have to be clear that if there are any thoughts and efforts by the Chinese and others to provide lethal support to the Russians in their brutal attack against Ukraine, that is unacceptable,” Thomas-Greenfield said.
Those comments came just before the news broke that President Joe Biden made an unannounced visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, on Jan. 20 to show support ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
The president pledged an additional $500 million in aid and vowed that the United States would continue to support Ukraine in the conflict.