Standing alongside Xi Jinping in the 15th-century Chamber of Facets, one of the most historic ceremonial venues at the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin raised his glass of white wine. He proceeded to make a toast to the “health of our great friend Xi and the deepening of the Russian-Chinese partnership”, before ending his speech with the phrase ganbei, Chinese for “empty glass”. Putin’s speech was a culmination of the Kremlin’s two-day charm offensive with China, aimed at cementing ties between the two countries amid Russia’s growing isolation from the west. From…
Tag: Vladimir Putin
Putin welcomes China’s controversial proposals for peace in Ukraine
Vladimir Putin has welcomed China’s proposals for peace in Ukraine at a joint press conference with Xi Jinping in Moscow – a plan the west has warned would allow the Kremlin to “freeze” its territorial gains in the country. Speaking at the Kremlin during a joint news conference after the second day of talks with China’s president Xi Jinping, Putin said Beijing’s peace plan “correlates to the point of view of the Russian Federation” and said that Ukraine’s western allies so far have shown no interest in it. China last…
Xi Jinping invites Vladimir Putin to China at Kremlin meeting – video
Xi Jinping has invited Vladimir Putin to visit China this year in a symbolic show of support after the international criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Russia’s president over accusations of unlawfully deporting Ukrainian children. Putin and Xi held a second day of talks after Putin said he was open to discussing China’s proposals on putting an end to the fighting in Ukraine and the US called on Xi to press him to ‘halt the war crimes’. Xi’s trip to Moscow has been viewed as a major boost for Putin amid international condemnation…
‘He is my best friend’: 10 years of strengthening ties between Putin and Xi
A visit by China’s president, Xi Jinping, to Moscow this week has shone a light on his strengthening relationship with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. The two leaders have met more than 40 times in recent years, growing increasingly familiar, and now refer to each other as “dear friends”. Xi has been described as a great friend by other world leaders before, including Robert Mugabe and Donald Trump, but does not always reciprocate the compliment like he has with Putin. 2013 Xi’s first foreign visit as China’s president in 2013…
Putin and Xi prepare for second day of talks in Moscow as Japanese PM heads to Ukraine
Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping were set to hold a second day of talks on Tuesday, as the internationally isolated Russian leader said he was open to discussing China’s proposals on the fighting in Ukraine and the US called on Xi to press him to “halt the war crimes”. Xi’s trip to Moscow has been viewed as a major boost for his strategic partner Putin, who is subject to an international criminal court warrant over accusations of unlawfully deporting Ukrainian children. The Chinese leader is expected to continue to position…
‘We’re a bit jealous of China’: Putin greets Xi Jinping in Kremlin – video
In remarks at the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin told China’s leader, Xi Jinping, that Russia was ‘a bit jealous’ of China’s rapid development in recent decades. During a meeting in which he invited Xi to sit close to him – in contrast to the long white table at which he sat with the French president, Emmanuel Macron – Putin said he welcomed Beijing’s proposal to end the ‘acute crisis’ in Ukraine and viewed the plan with respect The Guardian
Xi Jinping says China ready to ‘stand guard over world order’ as he lands in Moscow
Xi Jinping said China was ready with Russia “to stand guard over the world order based on international law” as he landed in Moscow for a state visit days after Vladimir Putin was made the subject of an arrest warrant by the international criminal court. The Chinese leader is expected to position himself as a potential peacemaker in the Ukraine war during his first state visit to Russia since Putin’s invasion. For his part, the Russian president will be hoping to project unity in the face of western isolation. A…
Xi Jinping will get Putin’s ‘view’ of war in Ukraine, says Kremlin official – video
Vladimir Putin will provide Xi Jinping with ‘clarifications’ on Russia’s point of view on the Ukraine conflict during the Chinese leader’s state visit to Russia, the Kremlin has said. During a call with reporters, the Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said the two presidents would discuss themes in the peace plan for Ukraine proposed by China. This is China’s president first visit to Russia for four years and will last three days. The Guardian
China’s Xi Jinping arrives in Moscow to meet Vladimir Putin – video
The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, arrived in Moscow to meet Vladimir Putin, days after the international criminal court charged the Russian president with war crimes in Ukraine. Xi and Putin declared they had a ‘no-limits friendship’ before the February 2022 attack on Ukraine, but Beijing has tried to portray itself as neutral in the conflict This is China’s president first visit to Russia for four years and will last three days The Guardian
Compare Iraq with Ukraine. It’s clear the era of US global supremacy is over | Jonathan Steele
It’s a useful coincidence that the 20th anniversary of George W Bush and Tony Blair’s illegal attack on Iraq falls only a matter of weeks after the anniversary of Vladimir Putin’s illegal attack on Ukraine. Neither war was authorised by the UN. Both are marked by massive destruction and huge loss of life. The Bush/Blair invasion and occupation of Iraq, and its chaotic consequences, have taken the lives of more than a million Iraqi civilians, according to one survey. US forces committed innumerable war crimes, not least the torture of…