Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin exchanged warm words in the Kremlin on Thursday during a grand ceremony welcoming the Chinese leader for his 11th visit to Russia, ahead of a military parade to mark 80 years since the end of the second world war.
After nearly four hours of talks, Xi described his meeting with his Russian counterpart as “in-depth, friendly and fruitful”.
Calling Xi a “dear friend”, Putin said the talks were “warm and substantive” and ties between Russia and China were stronger than ever before.
Putin announced plans to visit China in the autumn to mark the anniversary of Japan’s defeat in the second world war.
The two leaders presented a united front in opposition to a US-led global order they openly reject. Their display of solidarity comes as Donald Trump, the US president, wages a trade war against China and pushes Russia toward peace talks over Ukraine.
In a lengthy joint statement, they said they would deepen relations in all areas, including military ties, and “strengthen coordination in order to decisively counter Washington’s course of ‘dual containment’ of Russia and China”.
Ahead of the talks, Xi said: “History and reality have fully proven that the continued development and deepening of China-Russia relations is a natural continuation of the longstanding friendship between our peoples.”
Xi’s visit is a welcome boost for Putin at a time when his relationship with the Trump administration appears to be facing some turbulence.
While Russia has expressed a desire to repair relations with the US, seeing potential for lucrative business deals, significant differences remain between the two countries over how to end the war in Ukraine. Moscow continues to stand by its maximalist demands, showing little willingness to compromise. Earlier this week, JD Vance, the US vice-president, said Russia was asking for “too much” in its negotiations with Ukraine, in the latest sign of mounting frustration in Washington.
World leaders flying to Moscow for the Victory Day parade on Friday faced the threat of disruption from Ukrainian drone attacks, which forced most of the Russian capital’s airports to close on Wednesday. The flight of the Serbian president, Aleksandar Vučić, was rerouted.
Slovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico – the only EU leader to attend – was forced to take a circuitous route to Moscow on Thursday after Baltic nations closed their airspace to his flight. The detour means his jet is expected to fly over Hungary, Romania, the Black Sea, Georgia, and finally into Russia via Dagestan.
On Thursday, a three-day ceasefire in the war in Ukraine declared by Russia came into effect, though Moscow and Kyiv accused each other of continuing hostilities.
A Ukrainian military spokesperson reported Russian assaults along several points of the eastern front, while Moscow claimed Ukrainian forces had twice attempted to breach the border in its Kursk region.
“Predictably, Putin’s ‘Parade ceasefire’ proves to be a farce,” wrote Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, on X.
“According to our military data, despite Putin’s statements, Russian forces continue to attack across the entire frontline. From midnight to midday, Russia committed 734 ceasefire violations and 63 assault operations, 23 of which are ongoing,” Sybiha said. He added that Ukraine remained ready for “at least 30-day full ceasefire”.
Xi, whose plane was escorted by Russian fighter jets, was greeted on Wednesday by a military band playing the national anthems of Russia and China.
In an article published in Russian media, Xi said China and Russia had fought side by side in the second world war. “Today, 80 years later, unilateralism, hegemony and bullying are extremely harmful,” Xi wrote. “We must learn from history … [and] resolutely oppose all forms of hegemony and power politics, and jointly create a better future for mankind.”
On Thursday he said the world was facing “unilateralism and acts of hegemonic bullying in the international arena”, a veiled reference to the US-China trade war, in which China has accused the US of coercive behaviour.
Hopes in some Washington circles that the Trump administration might have been able to perform a “reverse Nixon” and persuade Russia to decouple from China by bolstering the US-Russia relationship appear to have failed with Xi and Putin’s declaration that their countries are closer than ever before.
China has been an economic lifeline for Russia during the war in Ukraine and Kyiv has been increasingly outspoken about what it says is China’s direct aiding of Moscow’s war effort.
The comments from Xi and Putin came a few hours after Lai Ching-te, the president of Taiwan, gave a speech in Taipei calling on European leaders to stand with Taiwan in the face of “a new totalitarian group”, a veiled reference to China and its allies. Lai compared Taiwan’s current predicament to that of European countries before the start of the second world war.
Xi has used this visit to underscore Russia’s support for China’s claims on Taiwan. “Russia has repeatedly reiterated that it adheres to the one-China principle, that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, opposes any form of ‘Taiwan independence’, and firmly supports all measures taken by the Chinese government and people to achieve national reunification,” Xi wrote on Wednesday.
Western leaders are increasingly worried that China could launch some form of assault on Taiwan in the next few years, with the war in Ukraine providing a template for how such an attack may play out on the world stage.
Additional research by Lillian Yang
