Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday touted close ties with Russia on the second day of his state visit to Moscow, inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to make a return visit later this year.
“It fits the historical logic that Chinese leaders take Russia as a primary choice for their overseas visits,” Xi said, adding that China and Russia are each other’s biggest neighbor and comprehensive strategic partner, Xinhua news agency reported.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was a major topic for the leaders in more than four hours of talks on Monday, according to both sides, with Putin saying before the meeting that he was ready to discuss China’s initiative for ending the war.
Photo: AP
Putin welcomed Xi to the Kremlin yesterday afternoon for more discussions. Russian state television showed the two men walking the long red carpets of the Kremlin to shake hands before joining their delegations.
The US and its allies have rejected China’s proposals as biased toward Russia, and Ukraine has been cool, as well. After his Russia visit, Xi was expected to speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for the first time since the Russian invasion in February last year.
Xi’s three-day visit, his first trip abroad since claiming a third term earlier this month, sends a strong signal of support for Putin amid efforts by the US and its allies to isolate the Russian president over his invasion. Russia has become increasingly dependent on China for trade with other markets cut off, but there were few indications that this visit would bring new deals.
Putin and Xi “had an in-depth exchange of views on the Ukraine issue,” the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement yesterday.
“Most countries support easing tensions,” it said, without elaborating.
China would continue to strengthen strategic coordination with Russia, Xi also said, according to the statement.
Xi yesterday morning met with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, who called for deepening economic ties and received his own invitation to visit China.
Later yesterday, the two sides were expected to sign several declarations, and Xi and Putin were to make statements to the media before a state dinner in the Palace of Facets.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby dismissed the visit as “a marriage of convenience.”
“President Xi finds himself in this weird position — wanting the war to end, but not wanting Russia to lose,” he said on MSNBC.
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