Hours after a new massive attack on Ukraine, the isolated Russian president speaks by videoconference with his Chinese counterpart to show his unity against the West, which calls for Beijing’s mediation
Hours after a new massive bombardment by Russia on Ukraine, its president, Vladimir Putin, returned to exhibit this Friday his alliance with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in a videoconference summit. In the first minutes of their meeting, broadcast on Russian television and reported by international agencies, Putin not only boasted of his good bilateral relations, but has even invited Xi to visit Moscow in the spring.
“We are waiting for you, Mr. President. Dear friend, we await you next spring for a state visit to Moscow”, Putin publicly announced, for whom this trip “would demonstrate to the world the closeness of relations between Russia and China”. According to Reuters, the Russian president has assured that these “are the best in history and withstand all tests.” In full confrontation with the West over the invasion of Ukraine, and with Russia condemned by the international community as seen at the last G-20 summit in Bali, Putin reminded Xi Jinping that “we share the same views on the causes, the course and logic of the current transformation of the global geopolitical scenario.
In a much shorter response than Putin’s lengthy introduction, Xi replied that, “in view of the difficult and far from clear international situation,” Beijing was willing to “increase strategic cooperation with Russia, provide each other with development opportunities and to be global partners for the benefit of the peoples of both countries and with the interest of stability in the world”.
military cooperation
Although neither of them has mentioned the war in Ukraine in the part that has emerged from their conversation, Putin has stressed that “we aspire to strengthen cooperation between the Armed Forces of Russia and China.” Trying to project an image of unity with Xi to mitigate his international isolation, he has hailed their joint efforts to counter “unprecedented pressure and provocations from the West.” In addition, he recalled that Russia has become one of China’s main suppliers of oil, above Saudi Arabia, and of gas, with 13.8 billion cubic meters up to November.
Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, when the two met at the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics, Xi Jinping celebrated the “unlimited friendship” with Russia, in clear ideological opposition to the democracies of the West. But the military failure of the Kremlin, which has exposed the supposed power of the Russian Army and exposed its serious problems and failures, has weakened Putin and marginalized Moscow, cracking its alliance with China due to the global impact of the war. In his last meeting in person, during the Shanghai Security Organization summit in Uzbekistan in September, Putin admitted to Beijing’s “questions and concerns” about the war.
Since its outbreak ten months ago, the Chinese regime has implicitly supported Moscow, blaming the US and NATO for the situation in its clear confrontation with the West. But Xi Jinping may be forced to moderate his alliance with Putin over his attempt to return to the international stage after spending nearly three years locked up in his country by the pandemic. Although Xi has not gone as far as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who snapped at Putin in Samarkand that “this is not the time for war”, during the G20 summit he met with all Western leaders, who seek his mediation. with Russia to achieve peace.
After perpetuating himself in power during the XX Communist Party Congress held in October, Xi Jinping’s position has also been weakened by the historic protests in China against the Covid 0 restrictions, which even called for his resignation. In the midst of an explosion of contagions in his country, and with the international community once again fearing a rebound in the pandemic due to his reopening of borders, Xi is also not interested in such a turbulent international scene that it affects the recovery of his economy, badly damaged by these three years of closures and confinements.
Demonstration of unity between the two countries or China’s attempt to appease the conflict, the result of this virtual summit with Putin will be seen in the coming weeks, whether or not the rain of missiles and drones on Ukraine continues and if Xi Jinping travels to Moscow in spring.
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