Putin and Xi celebrate ties unbroken by Russia’s war in Ukraine, Economic Times, Mar. 21, 2023.
By Valerie Hopkins, Chris Buckley, Anton Troianovski, New York Times
Synopsis
Though the war and the schisms it has exposed hung over the meeting, the public comments about it from Xi and Putin were muted, notwithstanding the cascading consequences of the past year, including Western sanctions on Russia, energy crises in Europe and devastation in Ukraine.
Standing side by side in a show of partnership unshaken by Russia’s yearlong war in Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin and China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, began talks in Moscow on Monday with boasts of their close ties and only understated mention of the conflict itself.
Though the war and the schisms it has exposed hung over the meeting, the public comments about it from Xi and Putin were muted, notwithstanding the cascading consequences of the past year, including Western sanctions on Russia, energy crises in Europe and devastation in Ukraine.
Instead, the leaders went to great lengths to flatter each other and project unity in a series of meticulously choreographed events. Xi is the highest-profile world leader to visit Russia since the invasion, and he arrived for the three-day visit as bloody battles continued in eastern Ukraine and only three days after the Russian leader was cited for war crimes by the International Criminal Court.
The imagery of alliance, in gestures if not a formal treaty, has stoked anxiety in the West that China might go further than diplomacy or economics in its support for Russia — possibly with weapons for use in Putin’s war — and entrench a powerful bloc opposed to NATO and the United States.
“Dear friend, welcome to Russia,” Putin told Xi, after the Chinese leader was welcomed with a red carpet and a military band. Putin told his guest that China was the subject of “envy” because its government had built a “very effective system for developing the economy and strengthening the state.” Xi expressed “deep gratitude” to Putin and said he was “sure that the Russian people will certainly continue firmly supporting you,” according to Xinhua.
But behind the display of friendship was a backdrop of hardheaded geopolitics. China and Russia both oppose a global order dominated by the United States and its allies, and that appears to outweigh any objections that Xi may have about Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday criticized the visit, saying it amounts to “diplomatic cover for Russia to continue to commit” war crimes.
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