CIA Director William Burns said on Thursday the intelligence agency assesses that China’s President Xi Jinping has been a little sobered by the war in Ukraine, but that it would be a mistake to underestimate Beijing and Moscow’s commitment to partnership.
Burns, speaking at a foreign policy event at Georgetown University in Washington, also said Xi maintains serious ambitions over Taiwan and warned that conflict over the island nation would be “deeply unfortunate” for all involved.
China, which signed a “no limits” partnership with Russia last year, has refrained from condemning its invasion of Ukraine even as Western countries, led by the United States, imposed sweeping sanctions against Moscow.
CIA Director William Burns speaks at the Georgetown Hotel and Conference Centre in Washington on Thursday. Photo: AFP
But Burns, who travelled to Ukraine recently to meet the country’s president, said Xi was likely to be surprised and unsettled by what he described as the poor performance of Russia’s military.
