Talks about Ukraine crisis
China and Russia practice solidarity
2/4/2022 3:11 am
Because of the Ukraine crisis, Russia is under international pressure. For Putin, the trip to China to head of state Xi should therefore come at the right time. The diplomats on both sides demonstrate their unity in advance.
Against the background of the Ukraine crisis and the tensions with the USA, China and Russia want to expand their cooperation. Before today’s meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and China’s head of state and party leader Xi Jinping in Beijing, the foreign ministers of both countries showed demonstrative agreement at a preparatory meeting on Thursday evening.
Both sides have coordinated their positions on the Ukraine crisis, Afghanistan, North Korea and other international and regional issues, according to a joint document after the talks between Foreign Ministers Wang Yi and Sergei Lavrov, the Russian news agency TASS reported.
“China is willing to work with Russia to deepen the long-standing friendship and comprehensive strategic coordination between the two countries,” Wang Yi said, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. China wants to “uphold international fairness and justice” and bring benefits to the peoples of both countries.
Before the opening of the Winter Olympics in the evening local time (1 p.m. CET) in Beijing, Putin and Xi Jinping want to meet for their first face-to-face meeting since the outbreak of the pandemic more than two years ago. Since then, however, the two have held several online conferences. The Russian President, who is being honored as a “Friend of China” in Beijing, is the most prominent guest at the opening of the Winter Games.
Because of tensions with China and its human rights abuses, a number of countries including the US, UK, Canada and Australia are boycotting the celebration by not sending senior political officials. Germany is not represented either, but like Japan, it does not speak of a boycott.
According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, both foreign ministers also opposed a “politicization” of sport. Both sides also rejected any confrontation between international camps and bloc formation, it said.