The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, landed this Tuesday at the Beijing International Airport to meet with his "dear friend," the president of China, Xi Jinping, and participate in the third Belt and Road forum to be held in the Chinese capital this Wednesday.
This is the third time that Putin will attend this forum, after also participating in those held in 2017 and 2019. An event that, he himself assured in statements reported by Reuters, differs from other colloquiums organized by other countries in that "no one imposes anything on others":
In my opinion, the main advantage of the cooperation concept proposed by China is that within the framework of cooperation, no one imposes anything on others. This is the difference between President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative and other projects pursued by countries with a colonialist flavor.
The relationship between Putin and Xi Jinping
The visit is also a demonstration of the "no-limits" cooperation between both countries. An alliance that has been strengthened during the war between Russia and Ukraine, especially at the energy level. NBC recalls that trade agreements between the two powers allowed Russia to export nearly 2 million barrels of oil a day to China. In addition, Moscow expressed its intentions to build a second gas pipeline to China.
The meeting between Putin and Xi Jinping will allow both leaders to discuss other international issues. In this way, a Kremlin spokesperson said, it is expected that during the meeting both presidents will hold a conversation about the position that both Russia and China will take in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. A meeting that will take place on the same day that the president of the United States, Joe Biden, travels to Israel.
