It appears that China was aware in advance of the Russian military operation against Ukraine. A Western intelligence report revealed that Chinese officials asked senior Russian officials in early February to wait until after the Beijing Olympics before beginning any attacks. U.S. officials regard the report as credible, but its details are open to interpretation, according to a source familiar with the matter quoted by the New York Times. The source also added that while the request was made at the time Russian President Vladimir Putin was visiting Beijing for the opening ceremony of the Olympics and meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, it remains unclear whether Putin directly discussed the matter with Xi.
A Flourishing Alliance Between China and Russia
Western intelligence officials, who monitored Putin’s military buildup on the Ukrainian border over the past weeks, had previously hinted and anticipated that the Russian president would postpone any military action until after the Olympics to avoid upsetting China. Following the meeting between Putin and Xi on the sidelines of the games, Moscow and Beijing issued a joint statement declaring that their partnership has "no limits," which also condemned NATO's expansion—a key justification for attacking Ukraine at the time, according to the report. This statement raised Western concerns about the burgeoning alliance between Beijing and Moscow.
China Denies
In response, Liu Bingyu, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, stated that "the claims in this report are mere unfounded speculations aimed at shifting blame and discrediting China," as reported by CNN, while the Russian embassy did not comment on the matter. It is noteworthy that the Russian military operation in Ukraine began on February 24, following Russia's recognition of two separatist regions in the eastern part of the country. During this period, Russia amassed thousands of its soldiers on the Ukrainian border from three sides, while several intelligence reports warned of Moscow's intention to "invade" Ukrainian territory, but Russia repeatedly denied plans to launch any military operation or invade its western neighbor.
