Beijing urges de-escalation after bridge attack and Russian missile strikes

China has offered a muted response to a blast that crippled a key bridge linking Crimea to Russia and the subsequent Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian cities, calling for a de-escalation of the war.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said “we have noted the relevant reports”, when asked about the explosion and strikes across Ukraine yesterday.

“We also hope that the situation can de-escalate as quickly as possible.”

The situation escalated yesterday after the blast. Russian missiles struck cities across Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv, leaving craters in roads and playgrounds. Ukraine’s internal affairs ministry said on messaging app Telegram that explosions had damaged more than 20 residential buildings in the capital.

Ukraine’s military added Russian forces had fired more than 80 missiles and also used Iranian drones launched from neighbouring Belarus.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow had launched strikes with long-range precision weapons against the energy, military and communications facilities of Ukraine, and vowed even more “severe” retaliation against Kyiv.

“Let there be no doubt … if attempts at terrorist attacks continue, the response from Russia will be severe,” Putin said.

Mao did not comment directly when asked about Putin’s description of the bridge explosion as a terrorist attack. “China is in communication with all parties,” she said. “We are willing to play a constructive role to help de-escalate the situation.”

The embassy in Kyiv yesterday told Chinese nationals not to come to Ukraine, and said those in the country should prepare for emergencies and avoid any danger to their personal safety.

“Air strikes are frequent across Ukraine, and the security situation is critical,” the embassy said in a post on WeChat.

As Russia’s only direct road and rail link to Crimea, the 19km bridge is a key supply route to the peninsula and a potent symbol of Russian control.

When the bridge opened to traffic in 2018, Putin hailed the event as historic and said it would bring Crimea closer to Russia. State news agency Tass reported that he told construction workers it had long been Russia’s dream to build such a bridge, dating back to the time under the tsars.

Dmitry Belik, a Russian lawmaker representing Sevastopol, the largest city in Crimea, told Tass in 2019 that it was unrealistic for Ukraine to destroy the bridge.

The Russian investigation committee on Saturday said the explosion was caused by a truck travelling on the bridge, and that the blast ignited fuel tankers of a goods train.

It accused Ukrainian special forces and unnamed foreign countries of helping to cause the explosion.

Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the blast but its officials have celebrated it.

Oleksandr Turchynov, former chief of Ukraine’s national security council, described the bridge in 2018 as a serious threat.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, China has not helped Russia militarily. But it has declined to label the war an invasion.