unsaveSave
expand-left
full screen Vladimir Putin. Archive image. Photo: Aleksey Babushkin/AP/TT
Russian President Vladimir Putin praises Beijing for its “genuine desire” to help resolve the war in Ukraine, Putin said in an interview with the regime-controlled New China News Agency ahead of a two-day state visit to the country.
The visit is Putin’s first trip abroad since he was re-elected in what analysts describe as a sham election.
– We praise China for its approach to solving the crisis in Ukraine. Beijing is well acquainted with its root causes and global and geopolitical importance, Putin says in the interview.
The two countries have in recent years expanded their economic cooperation and strategic cooperation has grown after Russia launched its full-scale invasion war in Ukraine.
Just days before Russia launched the full-scale invasion in February 2022, China promised an “unlimited partnership” between the countries.