China’s top leader Xi Jinping and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei V. Lavrov met in Beijing on Tuesday in a meeting seen as laying the groundwork for an expected visit to China by its President Vladimir V. Putin Russia and resisted increasing pressure from the United States and its allies.
Mr. Lavrov’s visit came days after Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen warned of “significant consequences” if Chinese companies provided material support to Russia’s war in Ukraine. It also came as President Biden was set to host the leaders of Japan and the Philippines on Wednesday to strengthen economic and security ties to counter China’s growing assertiveness in Asia.
Earlier in the day, Mr Lavrov met his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, and said the two sides discussed deepening security ties to counter the West’s “anti-China” and “anti-Russian orientation”. In a sign of the Kremlin’s continued deference to China, Mr Lavrov reaffirmed Russia’s rejection of any “external interference” over Beijing’s claims to the de facto independent island of Taiwan.
“There is no room for dictatorships, hegemonies, neo-colonial and colonial practices, now widely used by the United States and the rest of the ‘collective West,'” Mr. Lavrov said.
Mr Wang’s remarks were more measured – a reflection of China’s difficult balancing act of supporting Russia while trying to avoid alienating important trading partners in Western Europe.
China’s top diplomat did not mention the United States by name, a common practice among Chinese officials, and instead called on Russia and China to “oppose any hegemonic and bullying behavior” and “oppose the Cold War mentality.”
Mr Xi and Mr Putin declared “borderless” cooperation in February 2022, days before Russian forces invaded Ukraine. While China has declared itself neutral, its tacit support for the war underscores how it still needs close ties with Russia to weaken the global dominance of its main rival, the United States.
Moscow, closely aligned with Beijing, wants to show that it is not globally isolated despite its invasion of Ukraine. China provides Russia with diplomatic cover and an economic lifeline by buying Russian oil, gas and coal and selling Chinese consumer goods and technology to Russia.
Together, the two sides have sought to forge an alternative world order by garnering support from the developing world through multilateral organizations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS, a group called Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa that promotes economic and political ties.
Russia and China have also garnered support from countries such as Iran and North Korea that oppose the West and have a common interest in weakening the strength of US sanctions and the role of human rights in world politics.
Mr Putin is expected to visit China, perhaps next month. The date has yet to be confirmed, although Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday that Mr Lavrov’s visit could be seen as “preparation for contacts at the highest level”.
