Russian President Vladimir Putin has just finished settling down with major domestic affairs and flew to China non-stop for two days.
When Putin comes to China, there are many important things to discuss
It has been learned that Putin's visit to China is scheduled for 16 and 17 May, which is Putin's 20th visit to China, and it is also the first country he has visited abroad since he took office as president twice in a row, which is enough to prove that Putin attaches great importance to China.
Before Putin flew to China, he gave an exclusive interview to the Xinhua News Agency, and the major matters to be discussed during his visit to China were all on the table in advance.
In recent years, with the deepening of Sino-Russian political relations and the fact that the economies of China and Russia are highly complementary, Sino-Russian economic and trade cooperation has become increasingly close, but of course they are also facing some challenges.
[Russian President Vladimir Putin]
Since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the United States has adopted an extremely harsh economic blockade against Russia, and has repeatedly suppressed the normal economic and trade cooperation between Chinese companies and Russia on the grounds of "Russia-related".
China and Russia should make clear a purpose this time, that is, the trade between China and Russia will not be interfered with by a third party, although the sanctions imposed by the United States and the West have brought some trouble to China and Russia, but China and Russia can join hands to break the situation and promote the steady development of bilateral economic and trade cooperation.
Second, China and Russia should discuss the issue of international cooperation. With the rise of China, China-led international organizations such as the Belt and Road Initiative, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the BRICS countries have begun to emerge.
At the same time, with Russia's participation, these independent multilateral organizations are operating smoothly, and unlike the U.S.-led organizations, China and Russia operate on the principles of equality, fairness, openness, respect and consideration of each other's interests.
Therefore, China and Russia should discuss how to strengthen cooperation among members of various organizations in terms of soft rules such as trade, investment, technical standards, and market access, so as to achieve mutual benefit and win-win results.
[BRICS expansion is underway]
It is also worth mentioning that this year, Russia holds the rotating presidency of the BRICS, and it is also the first summit to be held after the expansion of the BRICS.
Third, China and Russia should discuss major international security issues. The Russia-Ukraine issue, the situation in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Northeast Asia are all key topics of international concern, and China and Russia, as responsible major powers, naturally need to discuss them.
At the same time, in the face of the complex and volatile international situation, it is important for China and Russia to further strengthen strategic communication and deepen all-round cooperation.
In short, the time for this Sino-Russian meeting is tight and the tasks are heavy, so it is necessary to set the theme before the visit to save time.
Putin will do what he says and visit China to stabilize major domestic affairs
Having said that, Putin's visit to China was set on the day of the inauguration ceremony, and there was no time set at that time, only as soon as possible.
Within a few days, Putin decided on the overall situation in the country and visited China without delay.
On 15 May, the Russian State Duma just approved the nomination of 16 ministers of the new Russian government. At this point, the Russian Duma has completed all the approval work of the personnel of the new Russian government.
【Shoigu】
A few days before the new leadership was decided, Putin also dismissed Shoigu from his post as defense minister and transferred him to the post of secretary of the Russian Security Council and vice chairman of the Russian Military Industrial Commission, and he was replaced by First Deputy Prime Minister Belousov.
In the case of a fierce war between Russia and Ukraine, Putin replaced the Minister of Defense, and Shoigu is Putin's most trusted confidant, there must be something unspeakable behind it.
According to Russia's explanation of personnel transfers, the main reason is that Russia's military and law enforcement authorities now account for 7.4 percent of the country's spending, which is too high, and in order to ensure that defense spending is in line with the country's overall interests, Putin has used civilian personnel as defense minister.
The outside world disagrees with this explanation, or rather, it is not the only reason.
First of all, Shoigu changed his position to the post of secretary of the Russian Security Council and also served as deputy chairman of the Russian military-industrial commission.
Judging from the position alone, he has been promoted, but considering that Russia is currently at war, the position of defense minister is the role that really holds real power. Because the resources and attention of the entire country are focused on the war, it can be said that, despite the nominal promotion, in reality Shoigu's power has declined, which is exactly the so-called "open rise and dark fall".
[Russia's new Defense Minister Belousov]
Why did Putin adopt such a strategy of "rising and falling" to deal with his cronies Shoigu? Personally, I believe that the main reason is that there is widespread factionalism within the Russian army, and Shoigu, as a long-time leader of the army, has served in the army for more than thirty years, which naturally forms a strong influence.
Putin, as the leader of the country, has long been intolerant of such factionalism, which is a challenge to the authority of the state and even his personal. Therefore, reducing Shoigu's influence and strengthening control over the army is a measure that he must take. And the early transfer of him is a kind of protection for Shoigu.
In short, for Putin, whether it is the transfer of Shoigu or the newly appointed leadership team, it will determine the direction of Russia's governance for the next four years. At this critical juncture, Putin's talks with China mean that China will be very important in Russia in the next four years.