Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu said on Sunday that the Chinese military is ready to “strengthen strategic communications” with the Russian armed forces during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“China is ready to cooperate with Russia to strengthen strategic communication between the two armies and strengthen multilateral coordination and cooperation, aiming to make further contributions to ensuring global and regional security and stability,” said Li. .quoted by the official Xinhua news agency.
The Chinese minister added that “military trust between the two countries has been increasingly consolidated, which translates into substantial progress in cooperation.”
Putin recalled the “recent and fruitful visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Russia”, which marked “the course for the development of relations between the two countries”. The Russian leader agreed to “further strengthen strategic coordination and deepen practical cooperation in various fields”.
Putin added that military cooperation plays an “important role in Russia-China relations”. expressed hope that the two armies will “enhance cooperation in joint training, professional exchanges and other fields”.
Li’s visit to Russia, which began on Sunday and ends on Wednesday, is at the invitation of his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu.
During his stay, he will meet Russian military leaders and visit military academies, Chinese army spokesman Tan Kefei said last week.
The Chinese and Russian armies “maintained a close interaction” that led to “new developments in strategic communications, joint military exercises and pragmatic cooperation,” Tan said.
This interaction “enriched the comprehensive strategic partnership” between Moscow and Beijing, the spokesman said at the time.
The Chinese military stated in late March that it was “ready to increase cooperation and communication with the Russian armed forces”.
Li, sanctioned by the United States in 2018 on charges of buying weapons from Russia’s state-owned Rosoboronexport, was named defense minister in March this year.
China has said it is neutral but maintains an “unrestricted” relationship with Russia and has refused to criticize the invasion. The country has previously criticized the imposition of sanctions on Moscow and openly blamed NATO expansion for the war.
In a document proposed last February to end the conflict, Beijing stressed the importance of “respecting the sovereignty of all countries,” referring to Ukraine, but also called for an end to the “Cold War mentality” – a term often used by China to criticize the foreign policy of the United States of America.
Beijing condemns the passage of a US military ship through the Taiwan Strait
However, China’s military on Monday condemned the passage of the US destroyer Arleigh Burke USS Milius through the Taiwan Strait on Sunday, a week after Beijing conducted military maneuvers around the island.
The Arleigh Burke USS Milius sailed through the waters of the Taiwan Strait [no dia] April 16, which sparked riots,” Shi Yi, spokesman for the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command, said today.
Shi said the Chinese military had “deployed troops to track and guard the US warship”.
“Eastern Theater forces are always on stand-by, ready to defend national sovereignty, security and regional peace and stability,” the spokesman added.
The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Milius was transiting a corridor outside the territorial waters of any country where international law allows freedom of navigation, according to a statement released today by the U.S. Navy’s Seventh Fleet.
“Milius’ passage through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific”, is in the same note. “The United States military flies, sails and operates where international law permits,” he added.
The presence of the US warship in the area coincides with an escalation of tensions between China and the United States, sparked by the meeting between Taiwan’s leader Tsai Ing-wen and Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, Kevin McCarthy in early April.
In response, China held four days of intense military exercises around Taiwan, including a simulated blockade of the island.
Beijing sees Taiwan’s international contacts as initiatives towards the island’s formal independence.
At the end of World War II, Taiwan became part of the Republic of China under the Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek. After the defeat by the Communist Party, in the Chinese Civil War, in 1949, the Nationalist government took refuge on the island, which to this day maintains the official name of the Republic of China, unlike the People’s Republic of China, on the mainland Chinese.
Beijing considers the island part of its territory and threatens violent reunification if Taipei formally declares independence.
Source: DN
