In a clear snub to Washington, whose top diplomat flew to China last month urging Beijing to scale back its relationship with Moscow, Xi said the two leaders see eye to eye on defence and military cooperation, including the war in Ukraine.
“The China-Russia relationship today is hard-earned, and the two sides need to cherish and nurture it,” Xi told Putin as the leaders met in Beijing. “China is willing to ... jointly achieve the development and rejuvenation of our respective countries, and work together to uphold fairness and justice in the world.”
A joint statement spoke of concerns about what were described as US efforts to violate the strategic nuclear balance, about global US missile defence that threatens Russia and China and about US plans for high-precision non-nuclear weapons. “Together we are defending the principles of justice and a democratic world order reflecting multipolar realities and based on international law,” Putin told Xi.
This story is from the May 17, 2024 edition of The Independent.
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This story is from the May 17, 2024 edition of The Independent.
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