BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping will have a video meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, the timing of which, Chinese experts said, embodies special significance just days before the Communist Party of China (CPC) celebrates its centennial, and the second interaction between the two top leaders within six weeks would further enhance the strategic bilateral partnership amid growing worries in the US over China-Russia ties.
Xi is scheduled to hold talks with Putin via video link on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying announced Friday. It is Xi’s second video meeting with Putin after the two leaders witnessed the groundbreaking ceremony of a bilateral nuclear energy cooperation project, Tianwan nuclear power plant and Xudapu nuclear power plant, on May 19.
The Kremlin said on its website that the event is timed to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the signing of Russia-China Treaty on Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation. The two leaders will exchange congratulations and evaluate the current state of and prospects for a strategic partnership between Russia and China, according to a public statement on the Kremlin website. It is also planned that the two will discuss current issues on the bilateral and international agenda.
The signing of the Russia-China Treaty on Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation is symbolic in the development of the China-Russia relationship, and the Russian president is also expected to express congratulations on the centenary of the founding of the CPC, which is a very significant moment, Yang Jin, an expert with the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday.
“Also, Putin and Biden just met. While the US had tried to lobby Russia to curb China, the online meeting between the Chinese and Russian top leaders would convey great significance, delivering a clear message to the world about their unwavering strategic partnership, which won’t be affected by external factors,” Yang said. The meeting between Biden and Putin on June 16 ended with no significant breakthroughs, though it had shown that US-Russia tensions have eased a little bit, according to some Chinese observers.
– The Daily Mail-Global
Times News exchange item
