China rejects report claiming Xi told Trump that Putin may regret Ukraine invasion

Days before Vladimir Putin's China visit, Beijing found itself battling a sensitive claim that had the potential to escalate tensions between the two nations. China on Tuesday dismissed reports that Xi Jinping had privately told Donald Trump that the Russian President might "regret" the invasion of Ukraine.

"The information you mentioned does not match the facts and is completely fabricated out of thin air," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said during a press briefing. China's foreign ministry later repeated the denial on X, calling the report "Completely false."

The sharp response came after the Financial Times reported that Xi made the remarks during Trump's visit to Beijing last week. According to the report, the US President commented during discussions on the Ukraine war.

For more than three years, China has maintained careful strategic alignment with Russia while avoiding direct criticism of Putin's invasion of Ukraine. Even when Western governments accused Beijing of helping Moscow sustain its war effort through dual-use goods and economic support, China stayed away from questioning Russia's actions.

That is why the report immediately drew attention.

According to people familiar with the US assessment of the summit cited in the report, Xi's comments appeared far more candid than in previous conversations with American leaders. A source familiar with earlier meetings between Xi and former US President Joe Biden reportedly said the Chinese leader had never openly shared his personal views on Putin or the war before.

The Trump administration, however, made no mention of such exchanges after the summit. A White House fact sheet released following the Beijing talks avoided references to either Putin or Ukraine.

PUTIN-XI SUMMIT IN CHINA

The timing of the report has made the episode even more delicate diplomatically.

The report surfaced just hours before Vladimir Putin was due to land in Beijing for meeting with Xi Jinping. This would be Putin's 25th trip to China, as both countries mark 25 years since signing their friendship treaty in 2001. Ahead of the meeting, Putin called Xi his "long-time good friend" and said ties between Moscow and Beijing had reached an "unprecedented level" of trust and understanding.

Kremlin officials also made clear that discussions with Xi would include major international conflicts, including Ukraine and Iran.

Since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, China and Russia have projected unity on the global stage. Just weeks before the invasion, both countries announced a "no-limits partnership".

The war itself has now entered its fourth year with no clear end in sight. While the frontlines have largely hardened into a grinding stalemate, Russia has continued launching heavy aerial attacks across Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv. Ukraine, meanwhile, has increasingly relied on drone warfare to strike Russian military infrastructure deep inside Russian territory, including areas near Moscow.

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With inputs from agencies