Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday praised his “good old friend” Xi Jinping as they set out to strengthen ties during a state visit that the ongoing Ukraine crisis and a global coronavirus pandemic will overshadow. In an article published in Chinese media, Putin hailed the deepening strategic partnership between Russia and China. The two countries have “unprecedented cooperation in the fields of energy, high-tech, and financial industries,” he said, according to a translation from Xinhua news agency. “This mutually beneficial cooperation has had a profound impact on the development of both nations.”
Moscow has been hit by massive Western sanctions over its Ukraine offensive, which is pushing Moscow further into a corner and making it more dependent on Beijing as a source of trade and military aid. Russia’s economy is mainly dependent on exports and oil sales, and the Kremlin is looking to strengthen its Asian partnerships to make up for the loss of the European market as it tries to avoid becoming a pariah state.
During the visit, Russia and China will sign more than a dozen agreements on trade, energy, and other issues and adopt a joint statement. Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the two leaders will also hold one-on-one meetings.
The visit comes as China is hosting a summit of ex-Soviet Central Asian states and other nations with close ties to both Russia and Beijing, which is trying to project itself as an alternative power in the face of an international diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics over China’s human rights record and fears of a new pandemic. Human rights activists hope to use the summit to draw attention to Xi’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims.
China’s Xi told Putin that the two countries are committed to “deepening back-to-back strategic cooperation” and have a common goal of promoting the Belt and Road Initiative, the infrastructure-building plan he launched in 2013 that spans Asia, Europe, and Africa. The two leaders are expected to discuss the situation in Ukraine and other issues of common interest.
The meeting will also focus on bilateral energy cooperation, Xi said. The two countries are working toward increasing annual gas deliveries to each other from 40 billion cubic meters now to 48 bcm, the official Xinhua news agency reported. They will also explore joint oil and gas exploration projects in the Arctic and the Far East and work on a plan to deliver natural gas to northern China via a pipeline from Russia’s Siberia region.
The leaders will discuss economic cooperation and boosting trade to 200 billion dollars. Xi has already met with Chile, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan leaders this week, laying wreaths on monuments to former Soviet leaders and discussing regional security. In addition, he held talks with the prime ministers of Papua New Guinea and Ethiopia. He did not shake hands with the other leaders because of COVID-19 precautions.
