China tells Russia’s security chief bilateral relations could ‘break new ground’ in 2026

BEIJING/MOSCOW – China’s top diplomat told Russia’s security chief that bilateral relations could “break new ground” in 2026 as the two officials met in Beijing on Feb 1, according to an official government statement.

Beijing and Moscow have ramped up economic cooperation and diplomatic contacts in recent years, and their strategic partnership has grown stronger since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Russian Security Council secretary Sergei Shoigu in Beijing on Feb 1 for the latest round of “strategic communication”, said the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Mr Wang told Mr Shoigu that China and Russia must work together to uphold multilateralism in a time of “turmoil” and “advocate for an equal and orderly multipolar world”.

China is willing to work with Russia to “deepen strategic coordination and push China-Russia relations to break new ground in the new year”, Mr Wang told Mr Shoigu, according to the ministry’s readout.

The meeting in Beijing came as the US said it was close to

brokering a deal to end the conflict in Ukraine

.

Russia’s top economic envoy met US officials in Florida this week for surprise talks on the war.

China positions itself as a neutral party in the conflict and says that it is not providing lethal assistance to either side, unlike the US and other Western nations.

But it is a close political and economic ally of Russia, and NATO members have branded Beijing a “decisive enabler” of the war – which it has never condemned.

During the meeting, Mr Shoigu also told Mr Wang that Moscow continues to support Beijing over Taiwan, state news agency TASS reported on Feb 1.

China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has not renounced using force to bring it under its control. Beijing has offered Taiwan a “one country, two systems” model, similar to Hong Kong, though no major political party in Taiwan supports this.

Russia has repeatedly said it opposes Taiwan’s independence in any form and considers the island an inseparable part of China.

“We see that China’s ill-wishers continue to destabilise the situation in the Taiwan Strait. For our part, I want to reaffirm our consistent and unwavering support for Beijing on the Taiwan issue,” Mr Shoigu said, according to TASS.

“We proceed from the fact that the government of the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing all of China,” he added. AFP, REUTERS