China rejects US push for tariffs on Russian oil imports, says sanctions complicate issues

Yi said, 'China does not participate in or plan wars, and what China does is to encourage peace talks and promote political settlement of hotspot issues through dialogue.'

Beijing: China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi has rebuffed the US call to G7 countries to impose tariffs on countries purchasing oil from Russia, saying that war cannot solve problems and “sanctions only complicate them”.

“China does not participate in or plan wars, and what China does is to encourage peace talks and promote political settlement of hotspot issues through dialogue,” Wang Yi said in an apparent reference to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s call to G7 ministers to impose sanctions on countries importing oil from Russia to stop the Ukraine war.

A US Treasury Department statement said on Saturday that Treasury Secretary Bessent during a call with G7 finance ministers, reiterated President Donald Trump's call to G7 countries that if they are truly committed to ending the war in Ukraine, they should join the US in imposing tariffs on countries purchasing oil from Russia.

“China is a responsible major country and also a country with the best record on peace and security issues,” Wang said during talks with his Slovenian counterpart Tanja Fajon on Saturday, official media here reported.

“War cannot solve problems, and sanctions will only complicate them,” Wang said, adding that China insists on resolving international disputes through dialogue and consultation, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Bessent’s statement did not name any country. But the US has often blamed India and China for purchasing Russian oil even when there are no tariffs on Beijing for it.

“Only with a unified effort that cuts off the revenues funding (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s war machine at the source will we be able to apply sufficient economic pressure to end the senseless killing,” Bessent said.