BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping assured his Russian
counterpart Vladimir Putin of Beijing’s support for Moscow on “sovereignty and
security” during a call Wednesday, according to state media.
اضافة اعلان
China is “willing to continue to offer mutual
support (to Russia) on issues concerning core interests and major concerns such
as sovereignty and security,” Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported Xi as
saying.
It was the second reported call between the two
leaders since Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
China has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of
Ukraine and has been accused of providing diplomatic cover for Russia by
blasting Western sanctions and arms sales to Kyiv.
According to CCTV, Xi praised the “good momentum of
development” in bilateral relations since the start of the year “in the face of
global turmoil and changes”.
Beijing was willing to “intensify strategic
coordination between the two countries”, Xi reportedly said.
The Kremlin said the two leaders had agreed to ramp
up economic cooperation in the face of “unlawful” Western sanctions.
“It was agreed to expand cooperation in the energy,
financial, industrial, transport, and other areas, taking into account the
situation in the global economy that has become more complicated due to the
unlawful sanctions policy of the West,” the Kremlin said following the phone
call.
The West has adopted unprecedented sanctions against
Russia in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine and Moscow considers that
Europe and the US have thus caused a global economic slowdown.
Moscow is also looking for new markets and suppliers
to replace the major foreign firms that left Russia following the invasion.
‘No limits’ relationship
The EU and US have warned
that any backing from Beijing for Russia’s war in Ukraine, or help for Moscow to
dodge Western sanctions, would damage ties.
China as well as India are two major economies that
have not taken part in retaliatory measures against Moscow over its invasion.
In the eyes of Chinese officials, the Europeans have
allowed themselves to be sucked into backing Ukraine, at Washington’s
initiative, in a move contrary to their interests as Russian gas consumers.
Once bitter Cold War enemies, Beijing and Moscow
have stepped up cooperation in recent years as a counterbalance to what they
see as US global dominance.
The two countries have drawn closer in the
political, trade, and military spheres as part of what they call a “no limits”
relationship.
The two sides last week unveiled the first road
bridge linking the two countries, connecting the far eastern Russian city of
Blagoveshchensk with the northern Chinese city of Heihe.
The call Wednesday between the two leaders fell on
Xi’s 69th birthday and was their first reported communication since the day
after Russia launched its invasion of its European neighbor.
Xi, who has described Putin as an “old friend”, also
invited his Russian counterpart to the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter
Olympics in early February.
Beijing is Moscow’s largest trading partner, with trade
volumes last year hitting $147 billion, according to Chinese customs data, up
more than 30 percent on 2019.
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