Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing, said Russia has never and will never get China’s approval to use nuclear weapons.
“If Russia uses nuclear weapons against Ukraine, China will distance itself from Russia,” he added.
Xi Jinping’s warning shows that China still fears war, despite Putin’s assurances last October that a tactical nuclear attack was not an option, politically or militarily.
The statement comes amid growing fears in the West that Russia may use tactical nuclear weapons in response to the backlash in Ukraine.
The US, Britain and France, NATO’s three nuclear powers, have told the Kremlin they will attack its forces with conventional weapons if they use tactical nuclear weapons.
After the warning, Putin did not publicly mention tactical nuclear weapons for several months.
People close to the Kremlin said the Russian leadership had independently decided that tactical nuclear weapons would not give Russia an advantage after drawing up scenarios for the outcome of their deployment.
A nuclear attack would likely turn the territory Putin claims for Russia into a radioactive wasteland and would do little to advance his military, the people said.
Meanwhile, Ukraine expressed concern that Russia could instead cause an accident at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022.
Putin mentioned nuclear weapons again last month as Ukraine’s counteroffensive began, saying Russia had sent tactical warheads to Belarus.
But Putin was quick to add that there was “no need” for it because the Russian army could stop the Ukrainian advance.
But the statement shows that even China may not be able to stop Putin completely, said Alexander Gabuev, director of Carnegie Russia’s Eurasia Center.
“Nuclear weapons are the most important guarantee that Putin will not lose this war,” he said.
