US says China is considering arming Russia in Ukraine war
US Secretary of State Antony Brinken said that China was considering supplying Russia with weapons in its war against Ukraine, warning Beijing that any supply “would cause serious problems.”
“Our current concerns are based on information that they are considering providing fatal assistance,” Blinken told CBS’s Face The Nation.
When asked what he meant by lethal support, he replied, “Everything from ammunition to the gun itself.”
US Secretary of State Antony Brinken warned Chinese diplomat Wang Yi of the consequences if China effectively supported Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, and in an interview after the two met, Washington said Beijing would move to Moscow. He said he was concerned about the possible sale of arms to the United States.
Top diplomats from the two superpowers met at a closed-door location on the sidelines of a global security conference in Munich, hours after Wang called Washington “hysterical” in China. An ongoing dispute over the US suspected of launching a US spy balloon.
Macron assures Zelensky of support for 10-point peace plan
French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday as Western leaders seek to shore up support for Ukraine amid the recent Russian military offensive.
In a statement, Macron’s office said the two leaders discussed Zelensky’s recent visits to the European Union in London, Paris and Brussels, and Macron reaffirmed Zelensky’s NATO support for the addition of military supplies to Ukraine. .Biden will discuss increasing US troops in Poland during upcoming visit, prime ministe says
Ukraine war could cost Germany 160 billion euros by end of 2023, finance minister says
The war in Ukraine will cost the German economy about €160 billion in value creation losses by the end of the year, or about 4% of gross domestic product, according to the president of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK). . .
This means that per capita GDP for Europe’s largest economy will be 2,000 euros lower than he normally would, DIHK boss Peter Adrian told the ‘Rheinische Post’.
German industry will pay about 40% more for energy in 2023 than it did in 2021, before crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to a study by Allianz Trade.
Industry has a higher share of the economy in Germany than in many other countries, and the sector is largely energy intensive.
Italian PM Meloni to visit Kyiv on Monday to meet Zelensky
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will travel to Kyiv on Monday to meet Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, a political source said on Sunday.
Meloni, who took office in October, has said she planned to visit Kyiv before the February 24 anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.
Despite friction on the issue within her right-wing ruling coalition and divided public opinion, Meloni has been a firm supporter of Ukraine.
Kremlin says West not willing to engage in Ukraine peace efforts
The Kremlin on Sunday said that Western countries have not yet shown they are open or willing to engage in peaceful initiatives to resolve the conflict in Ukraine.
‘Without the US, there wouldn’t be a free Ukraine anymore’, Polish PM tells Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that Poland was in favour of delivering as many weapons as possible to Ukraine – including fighter jets –so that its military would be able to quickly regain Russian-ocuppied territory.
Full military support for Ukraine could make 2023 a “turning moment” in European history, Morawiecki said. “I do believe that 2023, with our determination, will be the end of the war in Ukraine. And I do believe Ukraine will win that war.”
Russia rebukes Macron on comments, references Napoleon
Russia on Sunday scolded Emmanuel Macron over remarks about Russia’s defeat, saying that Moscow still remembered the fate of Napoleon Bonaparte and accusing the French president of duplicitous diplomacy with the Kremlin.
Macron told paper Le Journal du Dimanche that France wanted Russia to be defeated in Ukraine but had never wanted to “crush” it.
Kremlin scolds US for casting Crimea as legitimate target
The Kremlin on Sunday cast the United States was a “major provocateur” of international tensions for condoning attacks on Crimea, warning that the remarks about the peninsula underscored the depth of disagreement between the two countries.
