China says Western sanctions imposed on Russia over Ukraine conflict 'outrageous'

China blasts the Western countries, topped by the United States, for imposing sanctions on Russia over Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine, saying the bans have never solved any problem.

"The sanctions against Russia are getting more and more outrageous," Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng said on Saturday.

"History has proven time and again that sanctions cannot solve problems. Sanctions will only harm ordinary people, impact the economic and financial system... and worsen the global economy," he added.

Beijing had previously called the Western sanctions against Russia unilateral and not authorized by the United Nations Security Council.

The United States and its allies have been piling sanctions on Russia since February 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” aimed at “demilitarization” of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in eastern Ukraine. In 2014, the two regions declared themselves new republics, collectively known as Donbass, refusing to recognize Ukraine’s Western-backed government.

Announcing the operation, Putin said the mission was aimed at “defending people who for eight years are suffering persecution and genocide by the Kiev regime.”

Russia says it will halt the military operation instantly if Kiev meets Moscow’s list of conditions. Moscow has specified some of the demands as protection of its interests and nationals in Ukraine and prevention of the country’s accession to the Western military alliance of NATO.

The Chinese official also acknowledged Moscow's point of view on NATO, saying the alliance should not further expand eastwards, forcing a nuclear power like Russia "into a corner."

Russia: Humanitarian situation in some Ukraine cities 'catastrophic', Kiev to blame

The Russian military says Ukrainian nationalists are sabotaging humanitarian activities and responsible for a quickly deteriorating situation in some Ukrainian cities.

Russia ridicules idea that cosmonauts wore yellow in support of Ukraine

Also on Saturday, Russia's space agency dismissed Western media reports suggesting that the Russian cosmonauts joining the International Space Station (ISS) had chosen to wear yellow suits with a blue trim in support of Ukraine.

"Sometimes yellow is just yellow," Roscosmos' press service said on its Telegram channel.

"The flight suits of the new crew are made in the colors of the emblem of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University, which all three cosmonauts graduated from ... To see the Ukrainian flag everywhere and in everything is crazy."

Asked about the suits earlier, veteran cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev said, "Every crew picks a color that looks different. It was our turn to pick a color."

He added, "The truth is, we had accumulated a lot of yellow fabric, so we needed to use it up. That's why we had to wear yellow flight suits."

'Russian operation shut down 30% of Ukraine's economy’

In another development on Saturday, Ukraine’s Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said in a televised interview that the Russian operation in his country has forced 30% of Ukraine’s economy to stop working, .

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