By Bond Robertson 
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Sture (AFP) joins pressure on China to stop the country's support for Russia's war in Ukraine.
The short version
- Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stohr warns China against supporting Russia's war in Ukraine. It joins the criticism directed at NATO and the United States.
- Norway will increase its contribution to Ukraine to NOK 22 billion in 2022.
- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that China's support is crucial to Russia's war in Ukraine, and that they are selling advanced technology to Russia.
– We strongly warn China Against contributing to this aggressive war, directly and indirectly, Støre tells VG.
On Tuesday, Store announced that the government would increase this year's contribution to Ukraine to 22 billion Norwegian kroner. The proposal will receive widespread support in Parliament.
The Prime Minister says he fully agrees with the criticisms leveled against China by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and German Chancellor Levi Scholz in recent weeks.
– The messages that come from our key allies also come from us on the occasions when we have to meet with China, says Storr.
In the wrong company
– Will there be clear warnings? China From the next NATO summit in July?
– We'll have to come back to that. The important thing is that the message is clearly understood.
The message to China should also be, “We need to cooperate to achieve a stable, insecure world,” Storr adds.
China also, both in terms of its reputation and what we can expect from it, should not end up in the wrong company, he says.
Selling high technology
According to NATO Secretary General, China sells advanced technology to Russia: semiconductors and other components that can be used both civilian and military. Stoltenberg says that Russia imports 90% of its microprocessors from China. They are used to produce missiles, tanks and aircraft
Russia would not have been able to wage war in Ukraine without China’s support. it's the truth, Stoltenberg said during a ceremony held in Berlin on Thursday.
Blinken, who met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday, had the same message:
– We expressed our deep concern that China is providing China with components that strengthen Russia's brutal war against Ukraine, the US Secretary of State said before leaving the Chinese capital.
Two messages
Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Ap) told VG that the United States – with support from Norway – has two messages for China. He points out that US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently visited China.
The overall message is that everyone will benefit from a good relationship with China, but there is something that the United States – and us – are increasingly worried about. We are upset by their indirect support for the Russian war. He adds: “We do not know that they are supplying Russia with weapons, and the Chinese are keen to say that, but there may be other components that actually support Russia's war.”
Contributes to oil trade
Ine Eriksen Søreide (right) also believes the criticism of China is timely:
– They supply components and parts that the Russians need to make weapons and ammunition. It says China is also contributing financially by purchasing oil and natural resources from Russia.
– China may think it is not taking sides in the conflict, but it actually does when it provides the kind of support – which they know goes into maintaining and reproducing Russia's military capacity, says the foreign affairs leader in parliament. And the VG Defense Committee.
Two messages
Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Ap) told VG that the United States – with support from Norway – has two messages to China. He points out that US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently visited China.
The overall message is that everyone will benefit from a good relationship with China, but there is something that the United States – and us – are increasingly worried about. We are upset by their indirect support for the Russian war. He added: “We do not know that they are supplying Russia with weapons, and the Chinese are keen to say that, but there may be other components that actually support Russia's war.”
Undervalued
Professor and Asia expert Öystein Tonjo at the Department of Defense Studies is currently working on a new book on the relationship between the United States and China entitled “The Battle for Global Power.”
He says the United States and the West may have downplayed China's role in supporting Russia's war in Ukraine.
– I do not think that the United States and its allies have realized the enormous support that China has provided to Russia in the war now raging in Europe, Tonciu told VG.
He points out that the two countries entered into a strategic partnership when President Putin visited China a few days before the February 2022 invasion.
– China has enormous industrial capacity. One can expect that some of this capability will be used to rebuild Russia's military capacity when the war in Ukraine ends, Tonccu says.