Chinese companies must ‘fill the vacuum’ created by Russia sanctions Business

Beijing has told Chinese companies in Russia to seize economic opportunities created by Western sanctions, as the communist state seeks to come to the aid of the Kremlin.

China’s top envoy to Moscow has urged Chinese business leaders to waste no time and “fill the void” in the Russian market following the sudden flight of Western companies from the region.

In an address to a dozen Chinese business leaders at a meeting of the Russian Confucius Culture Promotion Association on Sunday, Ambassador Zhang Hanhui described the situation created by the sanctions as an opportunity for Chinese companies. , reported Bloomberg.

Mr. Zhang said, “The current international situation is complex. Large enterprises face major challenges and even disruptions in payment and supply chains. This is a time when private small and medium enterprises could play a role.

It comes after US President Joe Biden warned his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping last week that the emerging superpower would face “implications and consequences” if Beijing supported Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Earlier this month, the United States warned its allies that Beijing had signaled its willingness to provide military assistance to Russia following requests from the Kremlin.

However, the Chinese ambassador to the United States denied that Beijing had sent arms and ammunition to support Russia’s war, adding that it would “do everything to defuse the crisis”.

Yet China has criticized the West for imposing economic sanctions on the Kremlin and has pledged to maintain “normal trade relations” with Russia.

Mr Zhang said the Chinese government was finding ways to adapt to logistical and payment issues in the “new situation”, in an apparent nod to the sanctions regime.

As part of the moves, the West pulled a handful of Russian banks from the Swift financial messaging system, which is used by more than 11,000 lenders for cross-border payments and is crucial for global trade.

He also advised business leaders to “adapt” to the new reality as quickly as possible.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said “China and Russia have carried out mutually beneficial cooperation in economic and trade spheres,” not mentioning the ambassador’s meeting in Moscow.