Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in China this week is the latest sign of deepening strategic ties between both sides.
Putin will make a two-day state visit to China from Thursday at the invitation of Xi, it was announced on Tuesday. This will be the Russian leader’s first overseas trip since Putin kicked off his fifth term in office last week.
It comes amid the Kremlin’s growing reliance on China for trade and political backing as it seeks to strengthen its “no limits” partnership with Beijing on various fronts.
“It’s pretty clear that for these last two years, Putin has wanted three things from China,” Max Hess, fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Wednesday.
He wants a “deal” for the Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline and seeks further Chinese support for the war in Ukraine, especially in terms of hardware, he added. Putin also wants access to Chinese financial markets and to use the “Chinese currency to further Russia’s trade,” Hess said.
“We’ve really seen remarkably little progress on all of those things,” he added. “So, it’s really Putin going to China seeing what he can get.”
Mounting pressure
In an interview with state-media Xinhua published ahead of the visit, Putin said Russia-China economic and trade relations have developed rapidly, “demonstrating their continued ability to respond to external challenges and crises.”
He also backed China’s peace proposal on the Ukraine war and said Russia remained open to dialogue in resolving the conflict.
Beijing released a 12-point plan over a year ago that offered vague principles for ending the war in Ukraine. The plan wasn’t well received by Ukrainian and Western allies.
“Putin is in Ukraine for the long haul. He has no plan of giving that up,” said Hess, adding the Russian leader is trying to “press his advantages” on the battlefield and on the diplomatic front with China.
China is also facing rising pressure from Washington over its military support for Russia.
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced stiff new tariff rates on $18 billion worth of Chinese imports, to protect American industries from unfair competition.
As a result, Beijing has few options but to get closer to Moscow, observers say.
“Just look at Biden putting 100% tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle exports. All of this is sending a message to the Chinese that no matter who’s elected in November, that the U.S. is trying to contain them,” Ian Bremmer, political scientist and president of the Eurasia Group, said in a commentary.
“I think longer term, the more they see that from the US and their allies, the closer with the Russians they will eventually be.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit China on May 16-17, the Kremlin said on Tuesday, using the first foreign trip of his new six-year term to underscore the deepening partnership with China's Xi Jinping.
China and Russia declared a "no limits" partnership in February 2022 when Putin visited Beijing just days before he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, triggering the deadliest land war in Europe since World War Two.
"At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to China on May 16-17 as his first foreign trip after taking office," the Kremlin said.
Putin, 71, and Xi, 70, will take part in a gala evening celebrating 75 years since the Soviet Union recognized the People's Republic of China which was declared by Mao Zedong in 1949.
Reuters reported exclusively in March that Putin would travel to China in May.
The United States casts China as its biggest competitor and Russia as its biggest nation-state threat while US President Joe Biden argues that this century will be defined by an existential contest between democracies and autocracies.
Putin and Xi share a broad world view, which sees the West as decadent and in decline just as China challenges US supremacy in everything from quantum computing and synthetic biology to espionage and hard military power.
During the visit, Putin will meet Chinese Premier Li Qiang to discuss trade and economic cooperation. Putin will also visit Harbin, a city with strong ties to Russia.
Putin pivoted strongly to China after the United States and its allies tried to isolate Russia as punishment for the war in Ukraine.
China-Russian trade hit a record of $240.1 billion in 2023, up 26.3% from a year earlier, Chinese customs data shows.
China has strengthened its trade and military ties with Russia as the United States and its allies imposed sanctions against both countries. Russia has become China's top crude supplier, with its oil shipments to China jumping more than 24% in 2023 despite Western sanctions.
Putin and Xi "will discuss in detail the entire range of issues of the comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation," the Kremlin said.
They will "identify key areas for further development of Russian-Chinese practical cooperation, and exchange views in detail on the most pressing international and regional issues."
The Kremlin said the two leaders would sign a joint statement after the meeting. Read More
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