Chinese leader Xi Jinping received Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing on May 16, 2024, as both countries seek to strengthen their strategic ties. Shown here is an archive photo of the two men meeting in Beijing on October 18, 2023.
Sergei Guneev | Afp | Getty Images
Chinese leader Xi Jinping hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing on Thursday as both countries seek to strengthen their strategic ties.
Putin’s two-day state visit to China comes at Xi’s invitation and will be the Russian leader’s first foreign trip since the start of his fifth term in office last week.
Since February 2022, both countries have been promoting their “borderless” friendship as a counterpoint to the global influence of the USA
Since the invasion of Ukraine, China has increasingly become Russia’s lifeline to finance its war chest, while Washington continues to tighten the screws on Moscow and impose more and more sanctions.
In an interview with state media Xinhua published ahead of the visit, Putin said trade volume between the two countries reached $227.8 billion last year, up from $111 billion in 2019.
“The current bilateral trade volume is about 20 trillion rubles, or nearly 1.6 trillion yuan,” he noted. That’s about $219.6 billion.
Both sides aim to deepen cooperation in the areas of “high technology, space and peaceful use of nuclear energy, artificial intelligence and renewable energy,” Putin added.
China’s close embrace of Russia has been a sensitive issue for the US as Washington warned Beijing to cut its military aid to Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
On the trade front, U.S. President Joe Biden this week announced tough new tariffs on $18 billion worth of Chinese imports to protect American industry from what Washington calls “unfair trade practices” by China.
Increasing economic and diplomatic pressure from the United States and its allies could force China to move closer to Russia, observers say.
Putin is expected to meet Chinese Premier Li Qiang and travel to a trade and investment fair in the northeastern city of Harbin, according to Russian state media.
This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
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2024-05-16 04:01:00
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