Russian President Vladimir Putin received Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Moscow last week, and the event drew attention from the Western world for its timing. It was Jinping’s first visit to Russia after the invasion of Ukraine last year, and the Chinese government has signaled its close friendship with Russia in the intervening months.
Many Western governments are concerned that China could begin providing arms to Russia, escalating tensions between the two sides of the conflict. In no uncertain terms, the fighting in Ukraine has become a proxy war between Russia and the global West. So, what did Jinping and Putin discuss?
Official Statement
The two leaders released a joint statement following their meeting, affirming their agreements on a swath of geopolitical issues and asserting their mutual misgivings regarding the United States. Jinping has signaled that Beijing and Moscow will have closer ties going forward.
This is concerning for the international community, as Putin’s invasion of Ukraine largely isolated Russia and left the superpower with few allies on the global stage. With China’s support, however, Russia could theoretically afford to indefinitely pursue its military agenda in Ukraine–and perhaps other parts of Eastern Europe.
Peace Talks?
Jinping has characterized China’s role as that of a mediator in the conflict, saying he hoped he could help broker peace between Russia and Ukraine. However, that now seems unlikely. Their meeting was defined by agreements that would strengthen ties between China and Russia in terms of both trade and state messaging.
With their summit essentially amounting to a show of mutual appreciation, Western governments see Jinping’s purported role as a peace broker as misleading at best. Ukraine would likely dismiss any peace terms drawn up by Beijing owing to Jinping’s close personal friendship with Putin.
Divisions Deepen
The conflict in Ukraine has further divided the international community along predictable fault lines. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday, furthering the perception that the war is serving as a symbolic clash between allies of the US and allies of Russia.
Perhaps the most directly troubling aspect of the meeting between Jinping and Putin was their desire to “further deepen military mutual trust” between their countries. Russia and China are already engaging in joint military training exercises. They expressed their distaste for the growing influence of the US and NATO in international movements, perhaps laying the groundwork for future conflicts. In short, it doesn’t look like tensions are going to cool off any time soon.
