Sherman said the “range of sanctions” and export controls coordinated between US allies and allies against Russian President Vladimir Putin, the country’s economy and oligarchs should serve as an example for China’s leader. Xi Jinping. “It gives President Xi, I think, a pretty good understanding of what could happen to him if he actually supports Putin in any material way,” Sherman told a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register He said Beijing should “learn the right lessons” from the West’s coordinated response to Ukraine that any move by China to seize the democratically administered island of Taiwan by force would not be acceptable. “We hope the PRC understands that any such action would receive a response from the international community, not just the United States,” she said, referring to the People’s Republic of China. China has refused to condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine or call it an invasion and has criticized Western sanctions on Moscow, although a senior Chinese diplomat said last week that Beijing was not deliberately circumventing the sanctions. Beijing and Moscow have developed increasingly close ties in recent years, including announcing a “borderless” partnership in February. Sherman said Beijing was showing signs of a “conflict” over its close ties to Russia, including the appearance of grim images of civilian bodies being shot at close range in the northern Ukrainian city of Bucha when it was recaptured by Russian forces. read more “This does not mean that they do not see Russia as a partner. I am not naive. They do. But they have also publicly stated that it is not an alliance,” Sherman said. US President Joe Biden warned Xi during a video call in March of the “consequences” of any material support to help Russia deal with Western sanctions or provide military assistance. read more Biden later said China knew its economic future depended on the West, not Russia. read more Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Michael Martina. Editing by Mark Porter and Grant McCool Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
