Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that he understands Xi Jinping has doubts and concerns about the situation in Ukraine, but praised China’s leader for what he said was a “balanced” stance on the conflict.
The war in Ukraine has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed the global economy into uncharted waters, with soaring food and energy prices amid the biggest showdown between Moscow and the West since the Cold War.
In their first face-to-face meeting since the start of the war, Xi called Putin an “old friend” after Putin said the United States’ attempts to create a unipolar world would fail.
“We highly value the balanced position of our Chinese friends when it comes to the Ukraine crisis,” Putin told Xi.
“We understand your questions and concern about this. During today’s meeting, of course we will explain our position,” she added.
Putin’s first remarks about Chinese concern about the war come just days after a lightning defeat by his forces in northeastern Ukraine.
China refrained from condemning Russia’s operation against Ukraine or calling it an “invasion”, in line with the Kremlin, which calls the war “a special military operation”.
The last time Xi and Putin met in person, just weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, they declared a “no-limits” partnership and signed a pledge to collaborate more against the West.
Still, Beijing is distraught at the impact on the global economy and has been careful not to give Russia material support that could trigger Western sanctions on the Chinese economy itself.
“Old friend”
The Xi-Putin partnership is considered one of the most significant developments in geopolitics following the spectacular rise of China itself over the past 40 years.
Once a leader in the global communist hierarchy, Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 is now a minor partner in a resurgent China, which is expected to overtake the United States as the world’s largest economy in the next decade.
Xi, the son of a communist revolutionary who publicly praised the gems of Russian literature, and Putin, who grew up in Leningrad, now St. Petersburg, and grew up in the Soviet-era KGB, say their relations have never been better.
Nearly seven months of war in Ukraine have put pressure on Russia’s economic and military might, though Putin says his country is leaning towards Asia because, he says, the West is in decline.
While Russia and China have been rivals in the past and have fought wars, Putin and Xi share a worldview that sees the West as decadent and in decline, just as China challenges US supremacy.
Xi said China will work with Russia.
“In the face of changes in the world, in our times and in history, China is willing to work with Russia to play a leading role in demonstrating the responsibility of great powers and instilling stability and positive energy in a world in turmoil,” Xi told Putin.
Putin explicitly supported China over Taiwan.
China held military exercises around Taiwan after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island last month. The Taiwan government vehemently rejects China’s sovereignty claims.
“We intend to firmly adhere to the principle of ‘One China,'” Putin said. “We condemn provocations by the United States and its satellites in the Taiwan Strait,” he concluded.
Source: CNN Brasil
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