China's Top Diplomat To Visit Russia This Week Despite Promise Not To Provide Lethal Aid

China's top diplomat Wang Yi is set to visit Russia as he grapples with the United States' accusation that China is considering providing lethal aid to its closest ally.

CNN reported that the Chinese state councilor and director of the CCP Central Foreign Affairs Office will visit Moscow this week to cap off his eight-day Europe tour, which aimed to showcase China's diplomatic neutrality as the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine nears.

According to the Kremlin, it does not "rule out" a meeting between Wang and Russian President Vladimir Putin while the diplomat is in Moscow.

"Russian-Chinese relations are very multidimensional, allied in nature... The agenda is clear and very extensive, so there is a lot to talk about," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday, Russian state-run news outlet TASS reported.

While the Kremlin suggested that a possible Wang-Putin meeting would focus on the two countries' bilateral ties, Chinese state-owned Global Times reported that Wang is expected to raise the issue of peace talks to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

An unnamed diplomatic source shared similar information with Reuters, telling the outlet that Wang is expected to present a Chinese proposal for a political settlement of the Ukraine conflict as well as bilateral issues.

News of Wang's Moscow trip came as China denied claims by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the Asian country is considering providing weapons and ammunition to Russia to aid its war effort.

According to the European Union's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy Josep Borrell, Wang told him during their meeting Saturday that China doesn't plan to send weapons to Russia, contrary to the claims of Blinken.

"He told me that they're not going to do it, that they don't plan to do it," Borrell said.

But Borrell warned that should China pursue such an action, it would be a "red line" in its relationship with the E.U.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin also denied such claims and accused the U.S. of being the country that was "endlessly shipping weapons to the battlefield."

He also urged the U.S. to "alleviate the situation" by promoting dialogue and avoiding "spreading false information."

Before the controversy over China's alleged plan to aid Russia exploded, state councilor Wang spoke at the Munich Security Conference, where he promoted China's commitment to pursue peace through dialogue.

Wang said the war in Ukraine "must not continue" while insinuating that "some forces" don't want to resolve the conflict.

The Chinese official also urged European officials to reflect on what they should do to bring peace to the region.