If the enemy of my enemy is my friend, is the enemy of my friend also my enemy? Not necessarily. Or so China's thinking goes when it comes to the raging Russia-Ukraine war.

On the one hand, China is Russia's strategic partner. On the other, China is the largest trading partner of Ukraine. Beijing therefore tries painstakingly to strike a balance in its responses to the war between two of its friends. It expresses understanding of Russia's "legitimate concerns" over Nato's expansion, while underlining that "the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected".