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Putin praised China’s support during the war in Ukraine
Before his arrival in Beijing, the Chinese state media Xinhua published a long interview with Vladimir Putin in which he described the meeting with Xi Jinping as “a dialogue between old friends”.
He also praised China in its initiatives to “resolve the crisis in Ukraine.”
Unfortunately, neither Ukraine nor its Western patrons support these initiatives. They are not ready to participate in an equal, honest and open dialogue based on mutual respect and respect for each other’s interests.”
The war in Ukraine began when Russia invaded the country in February 2022. For more than two years, thousands of soldiers on both sides of the conflict have been killed, while Ukrainian civilians have borne the brunt of Russia’s aggression, with vast numbers either killed or made homeless by Moscow’s indiscriminate attacks.
China acted as a lifeline for Russia after Western sanctions were imposed that sought to punish Moscow for its aggression. Beijing remains one of the leading importers of Russian oil and gas, while trade between the two countries has increased at the same time.
In his interview with Xinhua, Putin criticized “Western elites” in their efforts to “isolate and weaken” Russia.
Key events
Russian state media RIA cited the discovery of PutinThe Russian president’s speech said the Russian president thanked Xi for the warm welcome to China and said the talks were held in a friendly and business-like atmosphere. He said Moscow and Beijing attach great importance to partnership.
TASS summarizes Xi Jinpingspeech on a Telegram news feed, reporting that China’s president said:
China and Russia will adhere to the principles of non-alignment and non-confrontation against third countries. China and Russia will deepen political mutual trust. China and Russia will support the emergence of a multipolar world. China and Russia demonstrate an example of building a new type of relations and ties between neighbors. China and Russia defend a world order based on international law.
Then Vladimir Putin spoke.
TASS reports that the two leaders and their teams had two and a half hours of negotiations before signing the document to clarify the details.
After several signing ceremonies, Xi speak first at a joint event with Putin in Beijing.
Other Chinese and Russian officials are now signing documents in front of Xi and Putin at the event.
Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin launched a joint event in Beijing. They were warmly applauded by those present upon their arrival. We will present you with all the key lines that appear. They began by signing a document to deepen the strategic partnership between the two countries, which was also warmly welcomed.
Summary
It’s 2 p.m. in Beijing, where the Russian president Vladimir Putin arrived on a two-day state visit, during which he will hold meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
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Putin arrived in Beijing early Thursday for talks that the Kremlin says will deepen the strategic partnership with China. Chinese state media confirmed the Russian president’s arrival for what it described as a state visit from an “old friend”.
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At a welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing, Xi greeted Putin as artillery fired several cannons.. China remains by far Russia’s most powerful friend in the world and has acted as a lifeline for Russia since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022
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Speaking during his meeting with Xi, Putin said Russian-Chinese cooperation is not directed against any other power and is a stabilizing factor for the world. Xi noted that the two leaders have met more than 40 times and that China-Russia relations are worth guarding and safeguarding on both sides.
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Russian news agencies reported that the bilateral talks planned to focus on trade and economic cooperation. Analysts say the two countries will seek ways to quietly circumvent U.S. restrictions that have reduced Chinese exports to Russia since the post-war boom in both consumer products and dual-use goods that were crucial to Russia’s military machine in Ukraine.
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Speaking to Chinese state media ahead of the visit, Putin praised China for its initiatives to resolve the “Ukraine crisis”. The Russian president also criticized “Western elites” in their efforts to “isolate and weaken” Russia.
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Both leaders will participate in a gala marking the 75th anniversary of the recognition of the People’s Republic of China by the Soviet Unionwhich Mao Zedong announced in 1949. The second leg of the state visit will take place in the city of Harbin, where Putin will attend the opening ceremony of the eighth Russia-China Expo and the fourth Russia-China Forum for Interregional Cooperation.
Among the vast number of officials in the Russian delegation is Putin’s new defense minister, Andrei Belousov.
Earlier this week, Putin removed his longtime ally Sergei Shoigu, as Minister of Defense, replacing him with Belousov. Analysts called it the most significant shift in military command since Russian troops invaded Ukraine more than two years ago.
Loyal to Putin, Belousov is a veteran economist and a former colleague of Ding Xuexiang, a close ally of Xi Jinping and a member of China’s Politburo Standing Committee
Both are likely to participate in upcoming meetings to discuss economic cooperation.
Alexander Gabuev, director of Carnegie Russia’s Eurasia Center, says both countries have gone to great lengths to really get to know each other’s teams and establish personal connections.
Now the Russian officials are not being pulled in a thousand different directions… because no one is talking to them.
Former Defense Minister Shoigu is among the Russian delegation Chinain his position as head of Russia’s powerful Security Council.
Putin says 90% of payments between China and Russia are made in their national currencies
The “timely” decision by the Russian and Chinese authorities to settle in their national currencies boosted trade between the countries, Vladimir Putin Xi Jinping said at a meeting in Beijing on Thursday.
Today, 90% of all payments are already made in rubles and yuan.
After Russia began its invasions in Ukraine in February 2022, Western countries agreed to remove “selected Russian banks” from Swift – the world’s main international payments network – in a bid to hit Russian trade and make it harder for its companies to do business.
At the time, there were concerns that such a move could damage the US dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency and accelerate the use of alternative currencies. But more than two years later, the dollar and dollar-denominated payment systems remain overwhelmingly dominant.
Putin and Xi are expected to use this state visit to find solutions that could allow them to continue expanding trade away from the watchful eye of the United States.
“When it comes to the economy, the most critical issue is the payment problem,” said Alexei Maslov, director of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Far Eastern Studies.
Big banks in China are restricting payments out of concern about US sanctions, Maslov said, and Russia has proposed solving the problem through a decentralized payment system that the West would not be able to trace. “Both countries will look for sanctions-resistant mechanisms going forward,” Maslov said.
Speaking during his meeting with Xi, Putin said the two countries would also seek to establish closer cooperation in “industry and high technology, space and peaceful nuclear energy, artificial intelligence, renewable energy and other innovative sectors “.
The Kremlin responded to Switzerland’s proposal for a peace summit in Ukraine
Like Vladimir Putin continues to meet with Xi Jinping in Beijing, the Kremlin described a planned peace summit on Ukraine in Switzerland as “useless” without Russia’s participation.
“Without Russiadiscussing security issues that concern us is absolutely useless,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian state news agency TASS.
Most likely, it will be just empty scholasticism with no prospect of getting at least some tangible result.
The peace summit planned by Switzerland is so far gathered delegations from over 50 countriessaid Swiss President Viola Amherd.
Russia has not been invited, but Switzerland says it could be if Moscow had not repeatedly said it was not interested. The Ukrainian government has said that Russia is not negotiating in good faith.
Putin’s two-day visit comes at a critical time in Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.
Russian forces launched an offensive in the northeastern region of Kharkiv, in the most significant border incursion since the full-scale invasion began, forcing almost 8,000 people from their homes.
At the same time, Ukraine’s depleted army is awaiting new deliveries of anti-aircraft missiles and artillery shells from the US.
On Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelensky suspended all foreign travel as Ukrainian troops withdrew from several areas in the northeast.
Zelensky said in his overnight video address on Tuesday that the army had sent reinforcements to Kharkiv and Donetsk region. “It is too early to draw conclusions, but the situation is under control,” he said.
Russia is opening new fronts to stretch Ukraine’s army, which is short on ammunition and manpower, along an estimated 620 miles (1,000 km) of front line, hoping that defenses will crumble. Russian artillery and sabotage attacks also threaten Ukraine’s northern Chernihiv and Sumy regions.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken – who was in Kiev this week – sought to reassure Ukraine of continued US support by announcing a $2 billion arms deal.
I know this is a really, really difficult time. Your soldiers, your citizens, especially in the northeast in Kharkiv, are suffering tremendously…you should know that the United States is with you, much of the world is with you. And they are fighting not only for a free Ukraine, but also for the free world, and the free world is also with you.
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