Xi, Putin slam US as they pledge to deepen already close military ties
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Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) arrived on May 16 for a two-day state visit that will include detailed talks on Ukraine, Asia, energy and trade with Chinese President Xi Jinping,
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MOSCOW/BEIJING – Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 16 condemned what they labelled as increasingly aggressive US behaviour, and pledged to deepen their countries’ already close defence and military ties.
In a clear snub to Washington, Mr Xi said China and Russia see eye to eye on a range of important issues, including the war in Ukraine, and will resist pressure from the West to downgrade their ties.
“The China-Russia relationship today is hard-earned, and the two sides need to cherish and nurture it,” Mr Xi told Mr Putin.
“China is willing to... jointly achieve the development and rejuvenation of our respective countries, and work together to uphold fairness and justice in the world,” he added.
Mr Antony Blinken, the US’ top diplomat, flew to China in April to persuade Beijing to scale back its relationship with Moscow.
But a joint statement spoke of concerns about what were described as US efforts to violate the strategic nuclear balance, Washington’s global missile defence initiatives that threaten Russia and China, and US plans for high-precision non-nuclear weapons.
Mr Putin, on his first overseas trip since being inaugurated for a new presidential term, described Moscow’s and Beijing’s cooperation in world affairs as one of the main stabilising factors in the international arena.
“Together, we are defending the principles of justice and a democratic world order reflecting multipolar realities and based on international law,” Mr Putin told Mr Xi.
Mr Blinken’s China trip appears to have been an unsuccessful attempt to undermine a “no limits” partnership
By picking China for his first foreign trip since being sworn in for a six-year term
Mr Xi and Mr Putin’s joint statement was described as deepening China’s and Russia’s strategic relationship.
It spoke specifically of how joint cooperation in the defence sectors between the two nations improves regional and global security, and of their plans to step up military ties.
It also condemned initiatives to seize assets and property of foreign states, a clear reference to Western moves to redirect profits from frozen Russian assets or the assets themselves to help Ukraine.
Mr Xi said both sides agreed that a political settlement to the Ukraine crisis was a step in the “right direction”. He said both China and Russia were opposed to a drawn-out conflict in Ukraine and its possible transition to an uncontrollable phase.
Mr Putin said he was grateful to China for trying to solve the crisis, adding that he would brief Mr Xi on the situation in Ukraine, where Russian forces are advancing on several fronts.
Shared view of America
Later, describing their initial session as “warm and comradely”, Mr Putin outlined sectors where the two are strengthening ties, from nuclear and energy cooperation to food supplies, and Chinese car manufacturing in Russia.
Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency cited Mr Putin as saying: “It is of crucial significance that relations between Russia and China are not opportunistic and are not directed against anyone.”
In an interview with China’s Xinhua news agency before his departure from Moscow, Mr Putin praised Mr Xi for helping to build a partnership based on national interests and deep mutual trust.
Mr Putin said: “It was the unprecedentedly high level of the strategic partnership between our countries that determined my choice of China as the first state that I would visit after officially taking office as president.”
The US casts China as its biggest competitor and Russia as its biggest nation-state threat, while President Joe Biden argues that this century will be defined by an existential contest between democracies and autocracies.
Mr Putin, 71, and Mr Xi, 70, share a broad world view, which sees the West as decadent and in decline, just as China challenges US supremacy in everything from quantum computing and synthetic biology to espionage and hard military power.
Mr Putin will visit Harbin in north-eastern China, a city with historic ties to Russia.
A mall devoted to Russian-made goods representing about 80 Russian manufacturers opened on May 16 in the city, the China Daily reported.
China has strengthened its trade and military ties with Russia in recent years, as the US and its allies imposed sanctions against both countries, particularly against Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine.
The West says China has played a crucial role in helping Russia withstand the sanctions
But China, once the junior partner of Moscow in the global communist hierarchy, remains by far the most powerful of Russia’s friends in the world. REUTERS
