Russia has asked China for economic and military aid to continue the war in Ukraine and circumvent the sanctions that have been imposed by the West. The information is advanced by the North American newspaper New York Times.

According to the New York Times, which quoted officials who requested anonymity, Russia has asked China for military equipment for the war, and for economic aid to overcome Western sanctions.

The sources we are quoting do not indicate whether China would have responded favorably or not to the request.

The news came on the eve of a meeting in Rome between the US President's security advisor Jake Sullivan and Chinese Communist Party official for diplomatic affairs Yang Jiechi.

The two officials and their teams "will review ongoing efforts to manage competition between the two countries and also discuss the impact of Russia's war against Ukraine on regional and global security," White House security council spokeswoman Emily Horne said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Jake Sullivan, quoted by CNN, pointed out that the US "closely watches the extent to which China provides, in any way, whether material or economic, assistance to Russia."

Sullivan said that Washington "has let Beijing know that it will not stand idly by and will not let any country compensate for Russia's losses due to economic sanctions" imposed since the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"There will undoubtedly be consequences in the event of major actions aimed at circumventing the sanctions," Jake Sullivan warned.

Since the beginning of the invasion, the Chinese communist regime has refrained from asking Russian President Vladimir Putin to withdraw troops from Ukraine.

US diplomat Richard Haass of the Council on Foreign Relations 'think-tank' indicated in a message on the social network Twitter that if China helps Russia, it will be "exposed to substantial sanctions and made a pariah; refusing would keep open the possibility of cooperation" with the West.