At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a state visit to China on May 16-17, CCTV News reported. On May 7 this year, Putin officially began his fifth presidential term. A week after Putin's inauguration, he immediately began his visit to China.
On the morning of May 16, President Xi Jinping held small-scale talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is on a state visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Xi Jinping pointed out that the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia is the main thread running through the development of bilateral relations this year. "Over the years, I have met with Mr. President more than 40 times, maintained close communication, and provided strategic guidance to ensure the healthy, stable and smooth development of China-Russia relations. Today's Sino-Russian relations are hard-won and deserve to be cherished and cared for by both sides. ”
The two heads of state then presided over wide-ranging talks. The two heads of state listened to the reports of the chairmen of the cooperation committees between the two governments on cooperation in the fields of investment, energy, economy and trade, Northeast and Far East, people-to-people and international cooperation, expressed satisfaction with the progress made, and affirmed the proposals for future cooperation. After the talks, the two heads of state jointly signed and issued the Joint Statement of the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation on Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of Coordination in the New Era on the Occasion of the 75th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the two countries, and witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral cooperation documents in the fields of economy and trade, nature conservation, inspection and quarantine, and media.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is on a two-day visit to China in Beijing on May 16, 2024. Visual China Diagram
Russian sources have pointed out that during Putin's visit to China, the leaders of the two countries will discuss in detail all issues concerning the comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination, determine the main direction for further developing Russian-Chinese practical cooperation, and have an in-depth exchange of views on the most pressing international and regional issues. CCTV News pointed out in the report that the trade volume between China and Russia increased from more than 110 billion US dollars in 2019 to more than 240 billion US dollars in 2023, exceeding the trade target set by the two heads of state ahead of schedule. Practical cooperation between China and Russia is an important factor in promoting the economic and social development and common prosperity of the two countries, ensuring technological progress and national economic sovereignty, realizing national modernization, improving people's well-being, and maintaining the stability and sustainability of the world economy.
On the eve of Putin's visit to China, from May 5 to 10, Xi Jinping was invited to pay state visits to France, Serbia and Hungary.
Andrei Kortunov, website of the Institute of International and Strategic Studies, Peking University Photo
In an exclusive interview with The Paper (www.thepaper.cn), Andrei Kortunov, academic director of the Russian International Affairs Council, said, "Beijing still hopes that China-EU relations can develop positively, even in the context of growing tensions between China and the United States." Obviously, the first visit of the Chinese leader to France, Serbia and Hungary in five years was aimed at testing the possibilities and constraints of such a development. ”
The following is the content of The Paper's interview with Andrei Kortunov:
The Paper: Immediately after the inauguration ceremony, President Putin began his visit to China, which is also his first overseas trip in the new term. How do you assess the significance of Putin's visit to China? How do you view the importance of Sino-Russian relations in the current international situation?
Kortunov: Putin's visit to Beijing is of practical significance. Today, China has become Russia's main economic, trade and political partner, and cooperation between the two countries is developing rapidly. The summit meeting is a good opportunity to maintain the positive momentum of cooperation between the two countries in various fields, outline new goals, and strive to overcome inevitable difficulties and obstacles.
The regular meeting of the leaders of the two countries takes place against the backdrop of further complications in the international situation. The Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict have not stopped, Yemen's Houthi rebels continue to attack warships and merchant ships in the Red Sea, the situation in the Sahel region of Africa remains unstable, and the threat of escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula remains. At the same time, global military spending is growing rapidly, surpassing $2.4 trillion last year. The process of NATO expansion is underway, as are plans to expand AUKUS and strengthen the military component of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue. The list of these negative trends is likely to continue to grow, adding to the importance of the highest-level dialogue between China and Russia. It is no exaggeration to say that in our extremely unstable and unpredictable world, Sino-Russian relations remain an important factor of stability and predictability.
The Paper: What do you think are the key areas of current cooperation between China and Russia? What other areas still have potential to be tapped?
Kortunov: Perhaps the first thing to point out is the development of bilateral trade between the two countries. Last year, bilateral trade between the two countries reached $240 billion. Today, China has become Russia's most important trading partner, its share in Russia's foreign trade has reached about a third and continues to grow. Russia's share of China's foreign trade is much smaller, about 4% (about 5% of China's total imports and more than 3% of total exports), but Russia's share of China's trade has almost doubled over the past five or six years. In some areas, China's exports are growing particularly rapidly, for example, last year China exported more than 900,000 vehicles to Russia. The surge in sales of Chinese cars in Russia is one of the most important factors for China's total car exports to catch up with Japan.
However, in the economic sphere, we still have many unresolved problems. Although the share of the two countries' national currencies in bilateral trade has reached 90%, not all bilateral trade has been conducted in national currencies. Chinese companies, such as the automotive industry, are reluctant to localize production in Russia. Russia still lags far behind many countries and regions such as ASEAN, the European Union and the United States in terms of total trade with China.
Member of the Russian delegation in Beijing, May 16, 2024. Visual China Diagram
Obviously, the time has come to look for a new "breakthrough" in Russian-Chinese economic cooperation. Such cooperation cannot be built forever on the basis of Russian gas and oil exports to China, especially given China's undoubted success in implementing its national strategy for the transition to carbon-free energy. In Russia, many people have high hopes for the implementation of the large-scale gas project "Power of Siberia 2". However, even the historic Power of Siberia 1 project has not yet reached its claimed capacity of 38 billion cubic meters, and the project will not reach this level until next year. Today, it's hard to say when China's oil and gas consumption will peak, but it's steadily approaching and likely sooner than Moscow expects. On the other hand, the development momentum of Russian-Chinese agricultural cooperation is good, and Putin's visit to China will further accelerate this process. In space exploration, promising information and biotechnology, there is potential for cooperation between the two countries, and in the Arctic, perhaps including in some common neighbouring countries, cooperation between the two countries will also expand.
The Paper: The Ukraine crisis has been going on for more than two years. In this process, China has upheld an objective and fair position and continued to promote a political solution to the Ukraine crisis. How do you assess China's role in this crisis?
Kortunov: In my opinion, the most important thing about the Chinese proposal is its comprehensiveness. Beijing understands that the current European conflict is not limited to a military confrontation between Moscow and Kiev, but includes a broader and fuller confrontation between Russia and the West. The West's involvement in the conflict includes not only the provision of weapons, intelligence, economic and financial assistance to the Ukrainian side, but also economic sanctions against Russia, political pressure and a propaganda war against Russia. Some Western leaders are even talking about the possibility of sending their own armed forces into Ukraine. Therefore, overcoming the crisis should be comprehensive, including the creation of a new system of European and even global security that takes into account the legitimate interests and concerns of all States. In this sense, China's proposal on Ukraine is the concrete implementation of the principles of the Global Security Initiative (GSI) put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping in his speech at the Boao Forum in April 2022. At the moment, the prerequisites for such a comprehensive solution have not yet been formed, but sooner or later China's proposal will be needed.
The Paper: Prior to this visit, the Chinese leader had just completed a successful visit to Europe, and China had reaffirmed its fair position on Ukraine to its European partners. From the perspective of Russia, how do you see the current development of China-EU relations?
Kortunov: Moscow no longer believes that Europe has any "strategic autonomy" over the United States and sees the EU as the "economic council" of NATO, and most European countries as "obedient satellites" of Washington. And Beijing, even in the face of growing tensions between China and the United States, still hopes that Sino-European relations can develop positively. Obviously, the first visit of the Chinese leader to France, Serbia and Hungary in five years was aimed at testing the possibilities and constraints of such a development.
The outcome of this trip can be said to be a great success for China's diplomacy. China's European partners have shown interest in cooperating in a number of areas, including new technologies and infrastructure projects. Of particular importance is, of course, the positive attitude of French President Emmanuel Macron, who claims to have unofficial political leadership in the EU. However, it is well known that many of Europe's most important strategic decisions are made not in capitals, but in Brussels. And the bureaucracy in Brussels tends to take Washington's lead, even if it is not in the national interests of European countries.
Overall, it can be argued that the extent to which Europe will gain "strategic autonomy" from the United States remains an open question, and the final answer to this question will depend on a number of factors, including the outcome of the upcoming US presidential election in November. But in any case, the relationship between China and the EU will remain complicated.