President Biden said Thursday that China had warned Russian President Vladimir Putin against using nuclear weapons during the war in Ukraine.
At a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, Biden was asked if there were any new concerns about Putin taking more drastic action in the wake of disarray among Russian generals and the rebellion of the Wagner group.
“I don’t think there’s a real prospect – you never know – that Putin will use nuclear weapons. Not only the West, but China and the rest of the world have said ‘don’t go there’” , Biden said in Helsinki.
Biden and Chinese President Xi last spoke in November in Bali, Indonesia, at the G20 summit. Senior Biden administration officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, recently met with their counterparts in China.
Biden traveled to Helsinki after attending a NATO summit in Lithuania, where member countries discussed continued support for Ukraine in its war against invading Russian forces.
The summit dealt a blow to Putin with allies more united than ever against his war in Ukraine. Biden and other leaders have also increased defense spending.
In another setback for Putin, Turkey agreed to allow Sweden to join NATO, which expands the alliance’s border. Biden and his allies also discussed bringing Ukraine into the alliance, which everyone says is in the country’s future but can’t happen until the end of the war with Russia.
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