The Ukraine crisis is a major challenge for China

Hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in eastern Ukraine, the US accused Moscow and Beijing of combining to create a "profoundly illiberal" world order. Yet State Department spokesman Ned Price also said that this was an opportunity for China to use its leverage with Russia to pull back Vladimir Putin, given the new "no limits" pact he signed with China's leader Xi Jinping on the same day as the Winter Olympic opening ceremony.

"You will have to ask the PRC whether they have used their own considerable influence with the Russian Federation to that end," Mr Price said at a press briefing. The Ukraine-Russia crisis is posing a major challenge for China on many fronts.

The ever-closer diplomatic relationship between Russia and China could be seen at the Winter Games with Mr Putin coming to Beijing as one of only a handful of known world leaders to attend. Significantly, Mr Putin waited until just after the Games were over to recognise the two breakaway regions of Ukraine and send in troops to back them.

In its public pronouncements, the Chinese government has urged all sides to de-escalate tensions in Ukraine. More recently, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed the situation with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, acknowledging that things were "getting worse" and repeating calls for "all parties to exercise restraint".

But now that Russia has dispensed with all such restraint, where does that leave China's official position as clashes escalate? The Chinese government thinks it cannot be seen to support war in Europe but also wants to strengthen military and strategic ties with Moscow.

Ukraine's number one trading partner is China and Beijing would ideally like to maintain good relations with Kyiv but this could be difficult to sustain when it is clearly so closely aligned with the government which is sending its troops into Ukrainian territory.

There is also the potential for trade blowback on China from Western Europe if it is judged to be backing Russia's aggression. Furthermore, a constant refrain from China's leaders is that it does not interfere in the internal affairs of others and that other countries should not interfere in its internal affairs. But as former US intelligence officer John Culver has posted on Twitter: "Russian annexation of portions of Ukraine, or invasion and seizure of Kiev, violate China's position that sovereignty is sacrosanct."