Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping vow closer ties as Russia bombards Ukraine again

The Russian President and the Chinese leader have vowed to deepen their bilateral cooperation against the backdrop of Moscow’s 10-month war in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping vowed on December 30 to deepen their bilateral cooperation against the backdrop of Moscow’s 10-month war in Ukraine, which weathered another night of drone and rocket attacks following a massive missile bombardment.

Mr. Putin and Mr. Xi made no direct mention of Ukraine in their opening remarks via videoconference, which were broadcast publicly, before going into private talks. But they hailed strengthening ties between Moscow and Beijing amid what they called “geopolitical tensions” and a “difficult international situation”, with Mr. Putin expressing his wish to extend military collaboration.

“In the face of increasing geopolitical tensions, the significance of the Russian-Chinese strategic partnership is growing as a stabilizing factor,” said Mr. Putin, whose invasion of a neighboring country has been stymied by fierce Ukrainian resistance and Western military aid.

The Russian leader said he expected Mr. Xi to visit Moscow in the spring. Such a trip “will demonstrate to the whole world the strength of the Russian-Chinese ties on key issues, will become the main political event of the year in bilateral relations”, he said.

Mr. Putin said military cooperation has a “special place” in the relationship between their countries. He said the Kremlin aimed to “strengthen the cooperation between the armed forces of Russia and China”.

Mr. Xi, in turn, said through a translator that “in the face of a difficult and far from straightforward international situation”, Beijing was ready “to increase strategic cooperation with Russia, provide each other with development opportunities, be global partners for the benefit of the peoples of our countries and in the interests of stability around the world”.

In its report on the meeting, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV described the events in Ukraine as a “crisis”. The term marked a departure from China’s usual references to the “Ukraine situation”, and the change may reflect growing Chinese concern about the direction of the conflict.