Vladimir Putin held more than four hours of talks with “dear friend” Xi Jinping of China at the Kremlin on Monday, showing off his relationship with his most powerful ally just days after an arrest warrant was issued over his war in Ukraine.
It was the first trip abroad for Mr Xi since he secured an unprecedented third term in power last month. He has been trying to portray Beijing as a potential peacemaker in Ukraine.
The two major powers have described Mr Xi’s three-day visit as an opportunity to deepen their “no-limits friendship”.
Mr Putin and Mr Xi greeted one another as “dear friend” and shook hands as they met in front of the cameras. More than four hours later, they were said to be still in discussion. “The conversation is still going on,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
Mr Putin congratulated Mr Xi on his re-election and voiced his hope that they would build even stronger ties.
“China has made a colossal leap ahead in its development in recent years,” Mr Putin said, adding that he was also “slightly envious” of its “very effective system for developing the economy and strengthening the state”.
Mr Xi praised Mr Putin and predicted that Russians would re-elect him next year. “Under your strong leadership, Russia has made great strides in its prosperous development,” he said.
China looks to Russia as a source of oil and gas for its energy-hungry economy, and as a partner in standing up to what both see as the United States’ domination of global affairs. The two countries have also held joint military drills.
Such a visit had long been anticipated – Mr Putin publicly invited Mr Xi months ago – but the symbolism was complicated by the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing an arrest warrant against Mr Putin last week for deporting children from Ukraine.
Washington denounced Mr Xi’s visit, saying that the timing showed Beijing was providing Moscow with “diplomatic cover” to commit further crimes.
Moscow denies illegally deporting children from Ukraine, saying it has taken in orphans to protect them. It opened a criminal case against the court’s prosecutor and judges. Beijing said the arrest warrant reflects a double standard.
In an article published in Chinese newspaper the People’s Daily, Mr Putin said the visit sends a message to Washington that the two countries are not prepared to accept attempts to weaken them.
Mr Xi aims to present China as a peacemaker, even as he seeks to strengthen ties with his closest ally Mr Putin. China has released a 12-point proposal to solve the Ukraine crisis, which has been largely dismissed in the West as a ploy to buy Mr Putin more time to regroup his forces and solidify his grip on occupied land.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has said that China arming Russia could lead to World War Three, but also that he believed Beijing was aware of this risk, implying he thought it was unlikely.
Mr Putin signed a “no limits” partnership with Mr Xi last year, shortly before invading Ukraine.
The Kremlin said Mr Putin would provide Mr Xi with detailed “clarifications” of his position on the war, without elaborating.
Meanwhile, justice ministers from around the world met in London on Monday to discuss support for the ICC, whose chief prosecutor Karim Khan called on Russia to repatriate the Ukrainian children to prove it is acting in their best interests as it says it is.
Several European Union countries agreed in Brussels to jointly buy a million rounds of 155mm artillery shells for Ukraine. Both sides in the war fire thousands of rounds every day.
Fierce fighting continued in the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut, where Ukrainian forces have held out since last summer in the longest and bloodiest battle of the war so far.
Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report
