Russian President Vladimir Putin met Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the eve of the Winter Games in Beijing. That writes Reuters news agency. The two leaders discussed domestic and foreign security issues and struck a new deal on gas supplies.
In a joint statement, released by the Kremlin, China and Russia say they are “against further NATO expansion” and call on the alliance to “drop its Cold War ideological approach”. Concerns are also raised about the new alliance AUKUS, which was formed by Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States in response to China’s push for expansion in the South China Sea.
Also read: Russia and China look to each other for support and strength – what connects them?
Deal for new gas deliveries
The statements about the geopolitical situation cannot be viewed in isolation from the tensions in Ukraine, where NATO is diametrically opposed to Russia. Russia has also signed a 30-year contract for new gas supplies to China. Deliveries will be made through a new pipeline in Mongolia by state gas company Gazprom. Every year, the Chinese state energy company CNPC will receive ten billion cubic meters of gas. The first deliveries should take place within two or three years.
Russia already supplies China with more than 16 billion cubic meters of gas via a pipeline from Siberia. As China increasingly attempts to replace coal, the Asian country’s demand for gas is rising. Payments for the gas deliveries are made in euros instead of US dollars.
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