Goodbye 2018

NATO is seeing signs China might help Russia wage its war, but the US has threatened 'serious consequences' if it does

Story by cpanella@insider.com (Chris Panella,Jake Epstein) • 5h ago

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attends a news conference during a NATO defence ministers' meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium February 15, 2023. Johanna Geron/Reuters

NATO's chief said on Wednesday that there are signs China may send lethal aid to Russia.

Washington has warned of "serious consequences" if China further involves itself in the war.

US official believes Russia is running out of munitions and has lost up to half of its tanks.

NATO is growing concerned that China is planning to send military aid to Russia and has joined the US in urging Beijing against further involvement in the war in Ukraine.

"We are also increasingly concerned that China may be planning to provide lethal support for Russia's war," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters earlier this week.

During a Wednesday interview with the Associated Press, Stoltenberg was asked if the military alliance is aware of any indication that China is preparing to do so. "We have seen some signs that they may be planning for that and of course NATO allies, the United States, have been warning against it because this is something that should not happen. China should not support Russia's illegal war," he told the outlet.

Armored vehicles from 5 countries are headed to Ukraine, but there's still some big items left on Kyiv's heavy armor wish list

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1 of 6 Photos in Gallery©Ben Birchall — PA Images/Contributor/Getty Images

Armored vehicles from 5 countries are headed to Ukraine, but there's still some big items left on Kyiv's heavy armor wish list

Five countries have said they'll send armored vehicles to Ukraine.

The US, Germany, France, and Sweden will provide armored fighting vehicles, and the UK will send tanks.

Still, some big items long requested by Kyiv have been kept out of Western military aid packages.

Western security assistance to Ukraine as it fights Russia has ramped up in the first few weeks of the new year, with five different countries announcing that they intend to provide Kyiv with armored combat vehicles.

On Thursday, Sweden, an aspiring NATO member, became the latest country to announce that it will send much-sought-after military hardware, pledging to transfer Combat Vehicle 90 infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine as part of its largest aid package so far.

Sweden has joined the US, Germany, and France, which have said that they will send Bradley, Marder, and AMX-10 RC armored vehicles, respectively. And the UK has said that it will send a squadron of Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine, making it the first Western country to send Western-made tanks to Kyiv.

While these much-sought-after weapons will give Ukraine a significant boost in firepower and ground combat capability, a handful of big-ticket items on Kyiv's heavy armor wish list continue to be kept out of military aid packages, such as the German-made Leopard tank and the American M1 Abrams tank.

NATO countries have pressed Germany to approve sending its tanks to Ukraine, but Berlin has been unwilling to sign off on any transfers, saying that the US would also need to send its own tanks. However, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Thursday that his country may eventually go rogue and send its Leopard tanks to Kyiv without German approval.

Ukraine's push to secure tanks and fighting vehicles comes as Russia's unprovoked invasion nears its one-year mark, with fighting heavily concentrated in the eastern Donbas region. Heavy armor could help Kyiv make advances in what has turned into a bloody and grinding affair.

Take a look at the five pieces of heavy armor that Western countries are sending to Ukraine.

Stoltenberg added that if China decided to send lethal aid to Russia, it would be a "blatant violation of international law."

Related video: Why China, Russia’s Biggest Backer, Now Says It Wants to Broker Peace in Ukraine (Dailymotion)

His comments mark the latest words of caution from the West, which has routinely urged China to reconsider its relationship with Russia as Moscow's full-scale war in Ukraine reaches its one-year anniversary.