Joe Biden to gauge Chinese position on Ukraine in call to Xi Jinping

President Joe Biden and China’s general-secretary Ix Jinping will discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping are set to speak on Friday as the White House warns Beijing that providing military or economic assistance for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will trigger severe consequences from Washington and beyond.

Planning for the call has been in the works since Biden and Xi held a virtual summit in November, but differences between Washington and Beijing over Russian president Vladimir Putin’s prosecution of his three-week-old war against Ukraine are expected to be at the centre of the call.