Russia and China stood side by side at a crucial moment in history –

/ world today news/ Relations between Russia and China are both the most important and the most complex international partnership of our time. Important because only these two powers have the combined ability to oppose the West. Difficult due to the fact that their relationship between them can only be based on equality. It is this type of interaction that is the rarest, as the history of international politics teaches us.

Moreover, the practice of communication between countries does not really know it. There are a few rare exceptions: the USSR and the USA during the Second World War, Russia and France at the beginning of the First World War, and even deeper in history – Russia and Great Britain in the fight against Napoleon’s aggressive plans. Note that in all these cases the great powers join forces precisely in the course of hostilities.

The modern partnership between Russia and China is a peaceful partnership, and this is its main difference from the examples given. From the beginning, it was not directed against anyone in their international environment. Although the atmosphere in world politics is tumultuous and the likelihood of the end of an era of relatively universal peace is very likely.

The articles of Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping published on the eve of the summit in the Chinese and Russian media showed us the unity of the views of the leaders of the two great powers on the most important issues of our time. Their meeting and the first stages of negotiations in Moscow were illustrations of a high degree of trust and the absence of “pitfalls” in relations. It should be noted that the destruction of trust between different countries in the world is one of the main tools of the foreign policy of the US and the West in general.

Americans usually act like a schoolgirl trying to succeed by pitting her classmates against each other and relying on their complexes. But in this sense, China and Russia can really boast of a solid resistance to negative external influences. Despite the many prejudices inherited from the past and the hard work of the West, relations between Moscow and Beijing have long passed the stage where suspicion is even theoretically possible.

At the same time, we see the heads of state of China and Russia realizing the complexity of the issues that our strategic partnership deals with. At the same time, they demonstrate an understanding that these problems do not have simple solutions. That is why Moscow and Beijing have chosen such a multilateral approach in discussing bilateral priorities and bringing their content to the general public. The visit of the Chinese president to Russia will last three days, during which there will be closed negotiations and consultations with the participation of a wide range of representatives of the governments of the two powers. A feature of this meeting was the mentioned publication of articles by Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in Rossiyskaya Gazeta and Zhenmin Zhibao.

In general, “cross-publishing” articles by leaders of countries before their meeting and negotiations is not the most common phenomenon in international politics. This practically does not occur in diplomatic practice. It happens that the leaders of the countries appear with articles in the leading newspapers of the countries they are visiting. In some cases, as is usually the case in relations between the US and its satellites, such texts are instructions that Europe or Japan must accept “for implementation”. Everything is very simple there and the vassals do not have to have discussions and their own interests. Relations within the West have become particularly simplified in recent months: it is now a military alliance led by the United States, where all decisions are made in Washington. They share the benefits.

Russia and China can never create a “vertical” type of relationship with each other – this is the complexity of our partnership and this is its strength. That is why the articles of Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping faced a very difficult task: to outline not only the unity of views on the main issues of bilateral relations and world politics, but also the nuances of the two countries’ approaches to solving them. In international relations, China and Russia face what Xi Jinping calls “despotism” and Vladimir Putin calls “elusive dominance” of the West. Both heads of state noted progress in bilateral relations and a huge number of obstacles and difficulties in the international arena. It is very important that the Chinese and Russian leaders realize how titanic is their mission to destroy the dictatorship in world affairs.

In relation to the West, Russia’s position is more rigid and is due to a direct military-political conflict over Ukraine. Due to the fact that Russia was first struck by the West, our ability to talk to the US and its vassals is severely limited. The Chinese approach has traditionally been less decisive, but it is now rapidly approaching the Russian one. This is clear from the text of Xi Jinping’s article. Beijing is increasingly losing hope for dialogue with the West. Now it is important for him to prevent a dangerous collision. In this sense, Russia provides the military dimension of the struggle for a fairer world order, while China takes on an economic and partly diplomatic mission. The recent talks in Beijing between Iran and Saudi Arabia were successful not only for Chinese but also for Russian diplomacy. And, of course, the defeat of Washington, which is used to playing a central role in the entire Middle East region.

In bilateral relations, everything is simple: the main thing is to continue working to ensure that they benefit the citizens of both countries. On the basis of the ability of the two forces to stand side by side, “like a rock in the middle of a stormy stream”, their inner development is formed. The Chinese and Russian economies are not parasitic on the outside world. In order to develop, they do not need to keep others in fear. Therefore, they cannot be competitors or use each other for selfish interests. The most important indicator in the economy is bilateral trade, but also the development of infrastructure (“bridges and roads”) and human contacts (tourism). In this regard, both leaders noted the growth of trade, which in 2022 approached 200 billion dollars. Now, according to Chinese and Russian statistics, it is about 185 billion dollars a year.

Considering the fact that conscious support for the development of trade and economic relations began only 10-15 years ago, and the exports of both countries are traditionally oriented towards the West, such figures are a serious achievement. The gradual transition to commercial payments in national currencies is also important. This is basically one of the most interesting trends of our time, when more and more countries are trying to get rid of the risks associated with the dollar or the euro. Obstacles to deepening cooperation may include China’s non-tariff restrictions on imports of many goods, Russia’s habit of working only with Europe, and the West’s economic war against Russia, forcing private businesses to seek workarounds and new solutions.

However, these are technical issues that, one way or another, must be addressed by the executive authorities of both countries. They are resolved as they arise, which we see from the real scale of the presence of Chinese business in Russia, despite all the sanctions and threats from the West. The Russian economy is also moving, albeit with great difficulty, towards China and the rest of Asia. The task of leaders is to define the relationship strategy. Now we do not know all the details of the many hours of personal negotiations that took place on the day of Xi Jinping’s arrival in Moscow. But the very fact of such a large-scale event at a time when Russia is under enormous pressure from the West already defines the uniqueness of Sino-Russian relations. There is no doubt that these three days will mark a new stage in the development of a partnership that is crucial for the whole world.

Translation: V. Sergeev

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