The Biden administration is discussing whether it should release intelligence that it says shows China is deciding whether it should supply lethal weapons to Russia for its war against Ukraine, according to U.S. officials.
The disclosure discussions come after several closed-door appeals to China from NATO allies that ended in a formal warning that Western officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, delivered last weekend in Munich to Wang Yi, China's senior foreign-policy officer, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The Biden administration has been working on declassifying the intelligence, but there has not been a final decision on when or if it will be released, the officials said.
Wang met in Moscow on Wednesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, even after the warning, and Blinken, after the meeting, told CBS News that China is considering supplying weapons to Russia.
A meeting between Blinken and Wang at the Munich Security Conference did not show any evidence that the two leaders reached common ground, with one source saying the meeting was "tense," considering the United States' recent shootdown of a Chinese surveillance balloon.
Blinken on Friday will address the U.N. Security Council to mark the first anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine. Last year, he shared intelligence with the council concerning the impending attack.
The White House National Security Council declined to comment on reports that the intelligence on China could be released. U.S. and European officials say the West is getting information that Beijing could be shifting on its stance on supplying weapons to Russia.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin would not address the information on any plans to supply weapons to Russia, but noted that "NATO countries, including the U.S., are the biggest source of weaponry for the battlefield in Ukraine, yet they keep claiming that China may be supplying weapons to Russia."
According to State Department spokesman Ned Price, Washington is watching closely to determine if China is moving forward with lethal aid. Since the invasion, China has stopped short of providing weapons but has helped Moscow's war efforts by buying Russia's oil and selling the country microchips and drones that can be used by the military.
The intelligence assessments also reflect China's concerns that Putin could decide to use nuclear force against Ukraine, according to U.S. officials. This concern was the only common ground China had with the West while in discussions in Munich. China is also concerned about how a Russian failure in Ukraine could affect Moscow economically and politically, they said.
The Biden administration has already released a high amount of declassified intelligence on Moscow and its military plans and arms trade with Iran, and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said last week it's too early to tell if U.S. intelligence sources have been affected.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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