Chinese President Xi Jinping warned against resuming military operations in the Middle East as he began talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Beijing on Wednesday, aiming to reinforce bilateral ties in the shadow of wars in Ukraine and Iran.
Discussions between the two leaders included the Middle East, state news agency Xinhua reported, with Xi adding urgency to his earlier calls for a ceasefire in a conflict that started with the US-Israeli bombing of Iran and then spread across the region. Hours earlier, US President Donald Trump threatened to resume strikes on Iran in the coming days as part of the push for a deal to end the war.
"A comprehensive ceasefire is imperative, restarting war is even more unacceptable, and adhering to negotiations is particularly important," Xi said.
The leaders of Russia and China - two of the biggest backers of Iran - are meeting a day after Trump said he'd held off on a new bombardment of Iran planned for Tuesday at the request of Persian Gulf allies.
The comments are increasingly raising the prospect of a return to active hostilities with Iran, which has so far refused to bow to Trump's demands to relinquish the remaining elements of its nuclear program after weeks of strikes that began in late February.
Earlier on Tuesday, Xi welcomed Putin outside the Great Hall of the People at Tiananmen Square, giving him the same treatment received days earlier by Trump. A 21-gun salute rang out as a military band played their two national anthems, while dozens of children holding Russian and Chinese flags greeted them and shouted, "Welcome, welcome."
In his opening remarks before the talks, Putin told Xi that the Russian-Chinese relations are at an unprecedented high level and a model of partnership.
Calling Xi a "dear friend," Putin said Russia remains a reliable supplier of energy to China. "In the current tense situation on the international stage, our close cooperation is especially needed," he said.
The Chinese president said their ties have developed because both sides work on deepening political trust and strategic coordination.
"China and Russia should focus on long-term strategies and promote the development and revitalization of their respective countries," said Xi, according to China Central Television. He added that their nations should also "build a more just and reasonable global governance system" in the face of "rampant unilateral hegemony," the state broadcaster reported, making what appeared to be a veiled swipe at the US.
Putin and Xi, who share a strong bond and a common desire for a multipolar world order to challenge US global dominance, will hold talks on Wednesday and also take tea together. China's Foreign Ministry said it was the Russian leader's 25th visit to the country.
Formally timed to mark the 25th anniversary of a friendship and cooperation treaty between Russia and China, Putin's visit comes hard on the heels of Xi's summit with Trump in Beijing last week.
The planned discussion over tea "is one of the most important events of the visit," Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters on Monday. "We, like our Chinese friends, are interested in this tea meeting lasting as long as possible."
Topics on the agenda at the talks between Russia and China include the planned Power of Siberia 2 pipeline project, according to the Kremlin. The two sides plan to sign approximately 40 documents, according to Ushakov.
Among the results that will probably come out of the summit is a joint statement on further strengthening the partnership and strategic cooperation between China and Russia, Tass reported. Besides his planned discussions with Xi, Putin will also hold separate talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang.
Russia hopes the turmoil in energy markets from the Middle East conflict and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz will make China more flexible in negotiations on a contract for gas prices for the project.
Chinese state media highlighted potential areas for cooperation from energy, agriculture, science and tech to space and artificial intelligence. Top Russian government officials and heads of major companies from Gazprom PJSC to Rosatom and Roscosmos are part of the visiting delegation.
With its economy under growing strain, Russia is heavily reliant on trade with China to weaken the impact of Western sanctions over the full-scale invasion of Ukraine that's in its fifth year. Russia is importing more than 90% of its sanctioned technology through China, Bloomberg News reported earlier.
China has denied that it's provided weapons to any parties of the Ukraine conflict, saying it strictly controls exports of dual-use articles.
What Bloomberg Economics Says...
"The bilateral relationship is vital to both nations, particularly on trade and security cooperation. And both share a vision of a multipolar world order. The partnership has limits, however, and Russia increasingly serves as the junior partner."
- Alex Kokcharov and Adam Farrar.
The US has at times sought to peel Russia away from partnership with China as part of a broader geopolitical strategy linked to the war in Ukraine and potential confrontation with Beijing over Taiwan. But Putin has little incentive to turn away from Xi, even as some Kremlin officials are growing uneasy over Russia's economic and diplomatic dependence on China.
"Putin could not continue to fight the war in Ukraine without the systematic support China is providing to the Russian war machine," said Henrietta Levin, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "In Beijing, we should expect Putin to seek greater material support for the Russian military and more assistance from Chinese financial institutions in evading U.S. and European sanctions."
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
