China’s Xi affirms ‘no limits’ partnership with Putin on Ukraine war anniversary

By Antoni Slodkowski and Laurie Chen

BEIJING - China's President Xi Jinping affirmed his "no limits" partnership in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, China's state media reported, on the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The leaders held the talks as US President Donald Trump has pushed for a quick deal to end the Ukraine war, raising the prospect that Washington could draw a wedge between Xi and Putin to focus on competing with the world's second largest economy.

The call appeared aimed at dispelling any such prospects - the two leaders underscored the durability and the "long-term" nature of their alliance, with its own internal dynamics that would not be impacted by any "third party".

"China-Russia relations have strong internal driving force and unique strategic value, and are not aimed at, nor are they influenced by, any third party," said Xi, according to the official readout published by Chinese state media.

"The development strategies and foreign policies of China and Russia are long-term," said Xi, adding that the two countries "are good neighbours that cannot be moved apart".

Russia, waging war against Nato-supplied Ukrainian forces, and China, under pressure from a concerted US effort to counter its growing military and economic strength, increasingly have found common geopolitical cause.

Xi has told Putin in recent years that the two have the chance to drive "changes the world has not seen in a century", which many analysts see as an attempt to challenge a US-led global order.

China and Russia declared a "no limits" strategic partnership days before Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022. Xi has met Putin over 40 times in the past decade and Putin in recent months described China as an ally.

"The Russians will see what carrots Trump may dangle to create distance between Moscow and Beijing, but they are confident that they can keep both pragmatic, beneficial ties with China and engage the United States if Trump is really willing to play ball," said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center.

'ROBUST PARTNERSHIP'

Trump has alarmed Washington's European allies by leaving them and Ukraine out of talks with Russia held last week in Saudi Arabia and blaming Ukraine for Russia's 2022 invasion.

Putin also informed Xi "about the recent Russian-American contacts", according to a Kremlin statement.

Xi said that China was "pleased to see the positive efforts made by Russia and all parties concerned to defuse the crisis," noting China's initiatives such as the creation of a group of nations called "friends of peace".

These efforts have focused on portraying China as a neutral peacemaker, but critics say they lack substance because the West accuses China of supporting Russia's war effort through supplies of dual use goods and massive purchases of Russian oil and gas.

China has denied it supports Russia's military-industrial base. China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, said at the Munich Security Conference last week China would not stop buying Russia's gas because doing so would make China unsafe.

Instead, Xi has directed bureaucrats to study Trump's policies and to respond to his initial tariffs and threats, as China's struggling economy with high youth unemployment is poorly placed to weather another trade war with Washington.

This was the second call both leaders have held this year, after they discussed how to build ties with Trump in January.

Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center's Gabuev said that the "fact that both sides did it on the third anniversary of the war just tells you how robust this partnership has become."

The two sides also discussed preparations for the commemoration of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two. Earlier this month, Xi accepted Russia's invitation to attend the event in May.

- REUTERS