German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday that he plans to discuss the issue of arms deliveries to Russia with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit.
“It is always a topic of my conversations to warn everyone against supplying lethal weapons to Russia. And that is why this will also be the case in the future, a central topic,” Scholz said at a press conference in Rio de Janeiro when he was was asked whether he would discuss the alleged supply of Chinese drones to Russia during his meeting with Xi, scheduled for Tuesday.
Scholz added that he has also always made it a point to raise during such meetings the export of so-called dual-use goods to Russia, which can be used for both military and civilian purposes. He will continue to do that.
The deployment of North Korean troops to Russia as part of the ongoing invasion of Ukraine will also be discussed, he said: “This is unacceptable and also a terrible change.”
According to Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, the German government believes that China is supporting Russia with drones.
“This must and will have consequences,” Baerbock said on Monday while attending a meeting of foreign ministers of EU countries in Brussels.
She made it clear that China should expect a similar response to the new EU sanctions recently imposed on Iran over its supply of missiles and drones to Russia.
The EU sanctions affect, among other things, two Iranian ports on the Caspian Sea.
