News Forum - Singapore’s foreign minister wants China to use influence to pressure Russia

[Thaiger]

As Singapore imposes unilateral sanctions on Russia, the country’s minister of foreign affairs calls on China to use its powerful influence to pressure Russia to stop invading Ukraine. The minister, Vivian Balakrishnan, said China’s “characteristics” would help it reason with Russia. “I hope they will assert their influence with Chinese characteristics, which means quietly and discreetly, but effectively”. Minister Vivian warned that China’s decisions in the coming days and weeks could decide the future of the world’s economy. He added that it will result in “decades of instability” for Russia. While Vivian hopes China will influence Russia, he said the […]

The story Singapore’s foreign minister wants China to use influence to pressure Russia as seen on Thaiger News.

Read the full story

[Fanta]

Yeah, that’ll work. NOT. How clueless is this guy to think that China is not supporting Russia? 

[Poolie]

Seeing as how China buys 70% of its weapons FROM Russia, exactly how is China supporting Russia? Paying its bills perhaps?

[AlexPTY]

6 minutes ago, Poolie said:

Seeing as how China buys 70% of its weapons FROM Russia, exactly how is China supporting Russia? Paying its bills perhaps?

These two countries alliance is the only thing keeping them alive and not being swallowed by American hypocracy. World need a balance... Interesting to see that even India had enough of it. Brazil, Argentina... Will be hopefully more. Enough is enough 

[Fanta]

5 hours ago, Poolie said:

Seeing as how China buys 70% of its weapons FROM Russia, exactly how is China supporting Russia? Paying its bills perhaps?

Financially ? Undoubtedly. China is Russia’s #1 trading partner. Annually  1/4 of Russia’s imports are from China and $US50+ billion of Russian exports go to China. Soft loans would be available to Russia. Plus Putin had a known war chest of over $US600 billion plus who knows how much more stashed or in IOUs. These sanctions are affecting Russian citizens,  not the Russian war machine.

2017 figures and have gone up since then. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_largest_trading_partners_of_Russia 

Politically? Undoubtedly. Russia & China released a joint 99 page statement when Putin was in Beijing a few days before the invasion of Ukraine. The statement is linked to in the article below and the meat of the article is about halfway down. No expansion of NATO is an agreed goal. 

https://thediplomat.com/2022/02/putin-and-xi-frame-a-new-china-russia-partnership/

Edited March 20, 2022 by Fanta

[Poolie]

So, nothing militarily then?

[Fanta]

8 hours ago, Poolie said:

So, nothing militarily then?

Why? Russia has more than enough soldiers, aircraft and boom sticks to handle Ukraine. Escalating this by militarily involving other countries puts Russia, China, North Korea and India (at least) against the West. Lots of cannon fodder in those countries. Approximately half the world’s population and too many nukes to risk it.  

[Poolie]

I mean nothing that they can be accused of by big brother America throwing their weight around. No other elements that Blinken can use to make trouble as usual.