The Chinese president arrived this Monday, March 20 in Moscow. This three-day state visit to Russia, the first in four years, is his first trip since his reappointment as head of the Chinese state. A gesture which therefore marks the importance of the Beijing-Moscow relationship and a breath of fresh air also for a Russian president who, 48 hours ago, was the first head of state of a country member of the Security Council of the United Nations to be the subject of an arrest warrant from the ICC.
From our correspondent in Moscow, Anissa El Jabri
The Chinese president’s plane landed two hours ago at Vnukovo airport. His arrival was broadcast live, a media treatment reserved for important guests. It was not Vladimir Putin who greeted him on the tarmac, but Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko. The last time the Russian head of state welcomed a foreign leader when he got off the plane was Gerhard Schröder in 2004. At the time of his Chinese counterpart’s arrival, the Russian president was making a speech in front of the executives of the Ministry of the Interior, according to the official press agency Mug.
Russian televisions also broadcast the images of the passage of the official procession in the streets of Moscow. In the Russian capital, the symbols of the conflict begin to settle. They were very rare so far. But we are beginning to see, in addition to the portraits of soldiers described as heroes of Russia, posters like the recent one for the celebration of spring, which represents a bouquet of peonies just above an artillery cannon.
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The two heads of state each published an article. ” Journey of Friendship, Cooperation and Peace writes Xi Jinping in the Rossiskaya Gazeta. China wants to present itself as a neutral mediator in the conflict in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin’s text, published last night on the Kremlin website, salutes ” China’s desire to play a constructive role in the settlement of the conflict” and at the same time the Russian president praises the quality of the ties between Moscow and Beijing, “superior to that of political and military unions at the time of the Cold War “.
” For me it is also a great opportunity to see a good old friend again with whom we have the warmest relations. “, also wrote the Russian president. Just before the arrival of its Chinese counterpart in Moscow, China, through one of its diplomatic spokespersons, called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to avoid ” Two weights, two measures “, after the issue by this court of an arrest warrant against Vladimir Poutine.
The two leaders will talk about Chinese plan to settle the conflict in Ukraine “, confirmed the Kremlin this morning. Plan received with mixed feelings in Russia. But the daily Izviestiaunderlined him this Monday, March 20: “ Just over a week before the visit brokered by China, Saudi Arabia, a close partner of the United States, and Iran, its longtime enemy, announced the restoration of diplomatic relations. This (..) highlighted China’s growing political and economic influence in a region long shaped by American influence. In this context, this image of a mediator in the Ukrainian conflict (although China does not particularly claim to be one) has probably become even more annoying for the United States. “.
Xi Jinping has always criticized what he calls “ unilateral sanctions against Russia “. In any case, they resulted in the explosion of Russian-Chinese trade.
A symbol of the increase in Chinese investment in Russia, Xi Jinping is staying in Moscow at the Soluxe hotel, the Moscow flagship of a Chinese hotel chain that opened last year. Bilateral trade has doubled in 2022 and reached almost 190 billion dollars, according to Chinese customs. The share of the yuan in foreign currencies for Russian trade insignificant a year ago (0.5%) has soared to 16%. Some analysts here dare to speak of “vassalization”. The Kremlin, as of Friday, insisted on a relationship of equals.
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