Russia says China will save him from sanctions, US warns him if it helps

Russian Finance Minister Anton Silwanov said the sanctions had deprived Moscow of access to $300 billion, out of $640 billion in gold and currency reserves, and added there was pressure on Beijing to close more.

We have a piece of our gold and currency reserves in Chinese currency, in Juan. And we see what pressure from Western countries is being put on China to limit bilateral trade. Of course, there is pressure to limit access to those reserves”, Siluanov said.

But I think our partnership with China will allow us to maintain the co-operation we have achieved, and not only to preserve it, but to increase it in an environment where Western markets are closing”, he added.

Western countries have imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia's corporate and financial system since it began military aggression in Ukraine, Yahoo reports, Klankosova.tv.

Siluanov's comments in a television interview marked the most clear statement so far from Moscow that he would seek help from China to ease the crisis.

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Washington has warned China not to support Russia.

“We are communicating directly and privately to Beijing that there will be consequences for large-scale sanctions if China offers support to Russia”, Sullivan said.

“We will not allow Russia to have a lifeline from these economic sanctions from any country, anywhere in the world”, Sullivan added, who will meet with Chinese top diplomat Yang Yechi in Rome on Monday.

Russia and China have recently strengthened co-operation, as both are under strong Western pressure on human rights and a host of other issues. Beijing has not condemned Russia's attack on Ukraine and does not call it an invasion, but has sought a settlement with negotiations.

Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping met in Beijing on February 4th and announced a strategic partnership they said was intended to counter the influence of the United States, describing it as a borderless friendship.

China is Russia's main export market after the European Union. Russian exports to China were worth $77.3 billion in 2021, with oil and gas representing 56 percent of exports, according to China's customs agency.