Ahead of his visit to China beginning Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow and Beijing are ready to strengthen their cooperation across a vast array of issues, including persevering sovereignty and safeguarding national unity, according to Reuters.
Mutual Trust
Putin noted that the Russian-Chinese relations have reached an “unprecedented level” of mutual trust and understanding, as he prepared for talks on Wednesday with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
He also noted that both Moscow and Beijing are ready to cooperate on the basis of mutual benefit and equality, pledging to support one another on issues central to their core interests, such as the protection of sovereignty and national unity.
Significant Visit
On Saturday, the Kremlin said that Putin would embark on a two-day state visit to China on May 19, immediately following US President Donald Trump’s trip to Beijing.
Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to “exchange views on key international and regional issues” and formalize their talks with a joint declaration.
The visit will also feature talks between Putin and Chinese Premier Li Qiang, focusing on economic and trade cooperation.
The announcement of Putin’s visit came on the heels of Trump‘s conclusion of his visit to Beijing on Friday, marking the first trip to China by a US president in nearly a decade.
Beijing has consistently called for diplomatic negotiations to put an end to the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
However, it has refrained from condemning Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, instead positioning itself as a neutral party.
China also denied supplying Moscow with weapons or military components for its defense industry.
It even accused Western nations of prolonging Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II by arming Ukraine.
Since Western countries imposed economic sanctions on Russian oil and gas over the conflict, China has emerged as Moscow’s key economic partner.
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