Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed deepening ties between their countries in talks Friday, despite signs of Beijing’s impatience over the wider political and economic impact of Russia’s struggling invasion of Ukraine.
Russia-China ties are the “best in history” and their strategic partnership is a “stabilizing factor” amid rising geopolitical tensions, the Russian president said in the video call. Russia would seek to strengthen military cooperation with China, he said.
Xi thanked Putin for sending a message of congratulations after a congress of China’s ruling Communist Party in October that handed him a precedent-defying third term in power. China stood ready to expand the “strategic partnership,” Xi said.
