Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted on Wednesday that he was looking forward to meeting his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, and argued that cooperation between the two countries helps stabilize the international situation.
“Of course we are looking forward to Xi’s visit to Russia, we have already arranged that in advance,” Putin said when he received China’s top diplomat Wang Yi in Moscow, according to the Russian news agency Interfax.
The meeting comes a day after news broke of Xi’s possible visit to Russia in April or May, and Wang’s announcement last week that China would come up with a plan to end the war against Ukraine that Russia launched on February 24 last year. to solve.
“We will give impetus to the development of our bilateral relations,” Putin said, quoted by Spain’s Europa Press agency.
“International relations today are complicated (…) In this context, cooperation (…) between China and Russia is of great importance for the stabilization of the international situation,” Putin said, welcoming Wang to the Kremlin, the seat of the Russian Presidency.
Putin rarely receives foreign officials who are not heads of state, and this meeting underlined the special ties between Moscow and Beijing, the French agency AFP said.
“We are reaching new horizons,” Putin added.
Wang Yi expressed Beijing’s desire to “strengthen the strategic partnership (…) and global cooperation” with Moscow, according to the translation quoted by AFP.
Russo-Chinese relations “are not directed against third countries and resist their pressure,” Wang said.
Before being received by Puti, Wang met with Russian Foreign Minister Serguei Lavrov, who told him that relations between the two countries are developing “in a secure and dynamic manner”.
“And despite the strong turbulence on the international scene, we show unity, a willingness to defend the interests of both sides in accordance with international law and the central role of the United Nations,” he said.
According to Lavrov, Russia and China continue to coordinate foreign policy issues to create a fairer, more open and more democratic system.
“Most countries are interested in this,” he added.
“My dear friend, I am ready to exchange views on matters of mutual interest and seek new pacts,” Wang told Lavrov, quoted by Europa Press.
Wang noted that thanks to the “strategic leadership” of Xi and Putin, “an opportune moment for development has emerged.”
“Despite the volatility of the international situation, China and Russia will always remain resolute and move forward with determination and confidence,” he said.
The visit comes after Wang announced at the Munich security conference last week that Beijing would present a peace plan to resolve the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
China has promised to publish its proposal for a “political solution” this week, in time for the first anniversary of the start of the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
China, a close ally of Russia, has never publicly supported or criticized Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while repeatedly declaring its support for Moscow in the face of Western sanctions.
But he also called for respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, while Moscow is demanding the annexation of five Ukrainian regions.
The number of civilian and military casualties in the war against Ukraine is unknown, but several sources, including the UN, have warned it will be high.
Source: DN
