Gavriil Grigorov/Pool/Sputnik/Reuters/File
Russian President Vladimir Putin will chair a conference on the development of Russia’s military-industrial complex in Moscow on May 15, the day before his arrival in Beijing.
Hong Kong
CNN
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Beijing for the start of a two-day state visit to China, emphasizing close cooperation with leader Xi Jinping, as Russian troops make significant advances in Ukraine.
The visit is Putin’s symbolic first overseas foray since entering a new term as Russian president last week, and a sign of President Xi Jinping’s support for Putin, as the two countries face intense friction. This is the latest sign of deepening ties in a world already closely tied. West.
Hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced through the presidential palace that he was canceling all future trips abroad to defend against a surprise Russian attack in the country’s northeastern Kharkiv region, President Vladimir Putin arrived in the Chinese capital early Thursday. arrived at.
The meeting in Beijing will be the fourth direct meeting between President Putin and President Xi Jinping since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, but the meeting was held due to delays in aid to Ukraine and Russia’s economy and defense. The decision was taken at a time of growing international concern about the course of the war. The complex does not appear to have succumbed to Western sanctions.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kiev earlier this week and reaffirmed the Biden administration’s support for Ukraine after Congress delayed approval for U.S. military aid to the embattled country for months. Blinken has pledged $2 billion in foreign military funding and said much-needed ammunition and weapons are flooding the front lines.
Mr. Xi welcomes Mr. Putin following pressure from both the United States and Europe to ensure that a surge in exports from China to Russia since the start of the war does not support the Kremlin’s war effort.
In recent weeks, White House officials have been in talks with the Chinese government about what they believe to be substantial support for Russia’s defense industrial base in the form of machine tools, drones, turbojet engines, microelectronics and other items from China. Conflicting. The Chinese government accused the United States of making “baseless accusations” regarding “normal trade and economic exchanges” between China and Russia.
Zhou Chengfeng/VCG/Getty Images
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s motorcade passed through Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on Wednesday.
A meeting between President Xi and President Putin in Beijing on Thursday is expected to address the war in Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza, as well as talks on expanding trade, security and energy ties.
Ahead of his trip, President Putin praised the “unprecedented level of strategic partnership” between the two countries in an interview with Chinese state media Xinhua News Agency.
He said the leaders aimed to “strengthen foreign policy coordination” and deepen cooperation in “peaceful uses of industry and high technology, space and nuclear energy, artificial intelligence, renewable energy and other innovative areas.” He said that
He also praised China’s “approach towards resolving the Ukraine crisis.” The Chinese government has never condemned Russian aggression, but rather maintains neutrality in the conflict. Ahead of a peace conference scheduled for Switzerland last month, Mr. Xi called for peace negotiations that take into account the positions of both sides.
The two leaders, who declared an “unrestricted” partnership weeks before the February 2022 invasion and are known for their personal chemistry, have continued to strengthen their countries’ diplomatic, trade and security ties since the start of the war. Ta. Mr. Xi also visited Moscow in 2023, his first foreign trip after entering a new term as China’s president.
Both leaders see the other country as an essential partner in their shared vision of rebuilding a world order that they see as dominated by the United States and seeking to thwart its rise. The two leaders are expected to discuss Russia’s hosting of the BRICS group later this year. The bloc is positioned as an alternative to the Western-backed G7 and expanded earlier this year to include more member states, including US foe Iran.
Mr. Xi and Mr. Putin also plan to sign a number of bilateral agreements, the Kremlin announced earlier this week. According to Chinese state media, the two countries will mark the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations with a “celebratory event”.
In addition to meeting with Xi in Beijing, President Putin is also scheduled to visit Harbin, the capital of northeastern China’s Heilongjiang province, which borders Russia’s Far East, and attend a trade and cooperation forum.
Historically, the region has been the site of a conflict between China and the Soviet Union that erupted in 1969 and long-simmering border tensions between the two countries, but in recent years it has become increasingly connected to parts of Russia’s Far East.
Putin will also meet with students and faculty from Harbin Institute of Technology, which was sanctioned by the U.S. government in 2020 for allegedly being involved in procuring supplies for the Chinese military.
