China, Russia hold bilateral talks, sign deal amid Western criticism | World News

The Russian prime minister signed a series of agreements with China during his visit to China on Wednesday Beijingdescribing the bilateral relationship as at an all-time high despite Western criticism of their relationship as war Ukraine procrastination.

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustinthe highest-ranking Russian official to visit Beijing since Moscow sent thousands of troops to Ukraine in February 2022, for talks with the Chinese president Xi Jinping and the prime minister Li Qiang.

As the war in Ukraine enters its second year and Russia is increasingly feeling the pinch of Western sanctions, Moscow relies far more on Beijing’s support than China’s to Russia to meet China’s oil and gas needs.

The pressure from the West shows no signs of easing, with statements by the G7 over the weekend singling out the two countries on a range of issues, including Ukraine. The G7 agreed to tighten sanctions on Moscow and urged China to pressure Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine.

“Today, relations between Russia and China are at an unprecedentedly high level,” Mishustin told Li Shufu during the meeting.

“They are characterized by mutual respect for each other’s interests and their willingness to jointly tackle challenges, which is related to the heightened turbulence on the international stage and the pressure of collective illegal sanctions by the West,” he said.

“As our Chinese friends say, solidarity can move mountains.”

The signed memorandums of understanding include the Agreement on Deepening Trade and Service Investment Cooperation, the Agreement on the Export of Agricultural Products to China, and the Agreement on Sports Cooperation.

According to Interfax news agency, Russia’s energy exports to China are expected to increase by 40% this year, and the two countries are discussing the supply of technical equipment to Russia.

“With the sanctions on Russia opening up new opportunities for China, it’s no surprise that China is happy to engage Russia economically, if not proactively, as long as any relationship they build doesn’t It will lead to secondary sanctions against China.” Mr. Zeng, director of the China Institute of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London.

“China’s policy on the Ukraine war is to ‘declare neutrality, support Putin, and pay no price’, and this visit once again confirms this, especially the factors that support Putin,” Tsang said.

‘Dear friends’

Xi Jinping visited Russia in March and held talks with the “dear friend” president vladimir putinin what Moscow called a “special military operation” to “eliminate” its neighbour, after Russia promised an “unrestricted” partnership ahead of its 2022 attack on Ukraine.

Beijing has rejected Western attempts to link its partnership with Moscow to Ukraine, insisting that the relationship does not violate international norms, that China has the right to cooperate with any country it chooses, and that their cooperation is not directed against any third country.

Xi told Mishustin that China and Russia should find ways to “improve the level of economic, trade and investment cooperation,” and that energy is an area where they can expand cooperation.

Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the Russian Security Council, held talks with Chen Wenqing, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, on Monday, saying that deepening relations with China is Moscow’s strategic approach.

Beijing has not publicly condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But since February, Xi has pushed a peace plan that has been met with skepticism in the West and cautiously welcomed by Kiev.

Last week, Li Hui, China’s special representative for Eurasian affairs, visited Ukraine and met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a trip to Europe that Beijing described as an effort to promote peaceful negotiations and a political settlement.

Li Hui is scheduled to visit Russia on Friday. (Reporting by Andrew Hayley; Additional reporting by Ryan Woo, Lidia Kelly, Ethan Wang and John Geddie; Editing by Michael Perry and Nick Macfie)