Take China and Russia’s ‘no limits’ relationship with a ‘grain of salt,’ says former PBOC advisor

The partnership between China and Russia should be taken with a grain of salt.

Beijing and Moscow announced a strategic partnership that was meant to counter the U.S. influence. Even though Russian troops were building up on the Ukrainian border, neither country mentioned it in the joint statement.

Li, a professor of economics at Tsinghua University, told CNBC that China will not support Russia in a military way.

China will continue to do business with Russia based on humanitarian principles. He said that it was to help Russian residents through the difficult time.

Beijing has blamed the conflict on NATO's eastward expansion. Chinese authorities have so far refused to condemn Moscow's invasion of its neighbor.

It stands in stark contrast to the developed world, where many countries have imposed sanctions against Russian businesses, banks and individuals that left Moscow with serious consequences for its invasion.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping pose for a photograph during their meeting in Beijing, on Feb. 4, 2022. The two countries announced a “no limits” partnership prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, though Beijing has tried to position itself further away from Russia than portrayed after Xi and Putin met.

The Institute of International Finance predicts that the Russian economy will fall into a deep recession this year due to the war.

Beijing will be very proactive in pushing for both Russia and Ukraine to come to an agreement.

He said that both Russia and Ukraine were good friends with China.

Li said that the issue of Taiwan was of a totally different nature than that of Ukraine.

Taiwan is a self-governed island off the coast of mainland China that is claimed by the People's Republic of China.

The overwhelming number of nations in the world do not recognize Taiwan as an independent country. According to the ministry of foreign affairs, only 14 countries are diplomatic allies of Taiwan.

He said that Ukraine has largely been recognized as an independent country.

Russia's war against Ukraine is a violation of recognition of many other nations. The issue of Taiwan is considered an internal issue of Chinese politics by most countries in the world.

He said that this is fundamentally different.

CNBC's Evelyn Cheng and Holly Ellyatt contributed to the report.