Putin and Xi say ties are at ‘unprecedented’ high at friendly summit after Trump visit - BERITAJA

HONG KONG — China-Russia relations are astatine a “historic high,” Chinese leader Xi Jinping said Wednesday, arsenic he met pinch Russian President Vladimir Putin successful Beijing days aft hosting U.S. President Donald Trump.

“The world scenery is undergoing profound changes, and the world faces the threat of sliding backmost into the rule of the jungle,” Xi said during bilateral talks, describing China-Russia practice arsenic a stabilizing unit successful the world.

Earlier, Xi welcomed Putin extracurricular the Great Hall of the People successful a invited ceremonial that echoed the 1 for Trump during his state visit past week. A subject set played the Chinese and Russian nationalist anthems, and a 21-gun salute was fired successful Tiananmen Square.

For China, Putin’s two-day travel is about reassuring a trusted state aft the Trump sojourn offered a reset successful Beijing’s turbulent ties pinch Washington.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping during a invited ceremonial astatine the Great Hall of the People successful Beijing connected Wednesday.Alexander Kazakov / POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Though neither Xi nor Putin referred to the United States straight successful nationalist remarks, Xi appeared to make a jab erstwhile he said the existent world business was “marked by intertwined turbulence and transformation, while unilateral hegemonic tendencies are connected the rise.”

Like Putin, Xi has criticized the U.S.-Israeli warfare pinch Iran arsenic a usurpation of world law, and he repeated his telephone to extremity the conflict successful bid to “reduce disruptions” to world power supplies.

Putin said China-Russia relations had reached an “unprecedented level” and that Russia was a “reliable power partner” amid the conflict successful the Middle East.

Calling Xi his “dear friend,” Putin invited Xi to sojourn Russia adjacent year. Not seeing Xi for a time “is for illustration being isolated for 3 autumns,” Putin said, utilizing a Chinese idiom.

The 2 leaders later signed about 2 twelve agreements successful areas including economy, trade, education, subject and technology. The Kremlin besides said location was wide statement connected a 2nd state pipeline from Russia to China, the Power of Siberia 2, though location is nary timeline for implementation.

In addition, Xi and Putin signed associated statements connected strengthening their countries’ “comprehensive strategical partnership” and advocating for a multipolar world. They besides agreed to widen the Sino-Russian Treaty of Friendship primitively signed successful 2001.

They criticized Trump’s “Golden Dome” rocket defense project arsenic a threat to world stableness and said the U.S. had been “irresponsible” by allowing the 2010 New START atomic arms power pact to expire earlier this year.

Putin besides touted Russia and China’s deepening waste and acquisition relationship, which had already been boosted successful the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

While Putin is nary alien to China, having visited 25 times since becoming president, he arrived Tuesday emotion a rare consciousness of unit astatine home. His warfare successful Ukraine looks progressively uncertain, pinch losses piling up connected the battlefield without meaningful advancement and Kyiv expanding the scope of its drones, including into the bosom of Moscow.

China has strived to represent itself arsenic a neutral successful the conflict while backing Russia diplomatically and economically. Earlier this week, the Chinese overseas ministry rejected a Financial Times report that Xi had told Trump that Putin mightiness regret his February 2022 penetration of Ukraine, saying it “does not accord pinch the facts and is purely fabricated.”

In the associated connection connected Wednesday, Russia said it welcomed China’s “desire to play a constructive role” successful uncovering a serene solution to the Ukraine war.

U.S.-China agreements

Also connected Wednesday, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce confirmed immoderate of the specifications of the U.S.-China agreements previously announced by the White House.

They included the Chinese acquisition of 200 planes from U.S. institution Boeing successful its first awesome Chinese woody successful almost a decade. The ministry said Washington had agreed successful speech to “provide capable proviso guarantees” for pitchy engines and airplane parts that Beijing has accused it of weaponizing.

The ministry said China would reconstruct marketplace entree for U.S. beef and resume poultry imports from U.S. states deemed free of vertebrate flu. It besides confirmed the constitution of a committee of waste and acquisition to facilitate tariff reductions connected immoderate $30 cardinal successful non-sensitive goods, arsenic good arsenic a committee of finance for the 2 governments to talk investment-related issues.

Neither the commerce nor the overseas ministry has confirmed the White House announcement that China has agreed to bargain $17 cardinal successful U.S. cultivation products each twelvemonth done 2028.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Reuters connected Tuesday that the U.S. was “not successful a rush” to widen a tariff and captious minerals waste and acquisition truce pinch China that expires successful November, saying “things are stable” and “we’re seeing them again.”

Speaking to reporters successful Tokyo connected Wednesday, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said that while the Trump-Xi acme had a “certain cordiality” and whitethorn person lowered tensions betwixt the world’s 2 biggest economies, the deficiency of immoderate awesome agreements raises the stakes for Xi’s U.S. sojourn successful September.

“Let’s beryllium clear: No awesome breakthrough was achieved, and truthful the sojourn of President Xi to Washington gains an tremendous importance,” Guterres said.

Putin and Xi successful Beijing connected Wednesday.Kremlin Press Service / Anadolu via Getty Images

Trump and Xi could meet arsenic galore arsenic 4 times this year, pinch Xi perchance walking to Miami successful December for the Group of 20 acme and Trump perchance walking to China successful November erstwhile it hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) acme successful the metropolis of Shenzhen.

Russian officials said a gathering betwixt Trump and Putin could besides beryllium connected the array during the APEC summit.

“I deliberation that if some leaders are successful China, they will about apt transverse paths and clasp immoderate benignant of meeting,” statesmanlike adjutant Yuri Ushakov told Russian authorities media. “This has not yet been agreed upon, but since location is specified a prospect, it is improbable that anyone will garbage it.”