Russian and Chinese leaders will talk about Ukraine, energy and military cooperation, help from Vladimir Putin
Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s two-day visit to Moscow next week will be purely business and “discharged of all additional ceremonial things”, Assistant to Russian President Vladimir Putin Yuri Ushakov revealed.
A one-on-one meeting between Putin and Xi will take place in the Kremlin on Monday afternoon, Ushakov told reporters on Friday.
“We [Russia] attach great importance to this informal conversation behind closed doors, because during it the most crucial and sensitive issues in the relations between the two countries, including conduct in the international arena, will be discussed,” he said.
On Tuesday morning, the Chinese leader is due to meet with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. The lengthy negotiations involving the presidents and high-level delegations from Russia and China, including defense, foreign ministers and other officials, will be held later in the day, according to the aide.
During the visit, Putin and Xi will discuss the conflict in Ukraine, Ushakov said, adding that Moscow appreciates Beijing’s position. “measure” position of the question. China has resisted Western pressure to impose restrictions on Russia on its military operation, while constantly calling for a peaceful resolution to the crisis and stressing the role of the United States in provoking it.
Particular attention from the leadership will be given to issues of energy cooperation, Ushakov said. China has become one of the biggest consumers of Russian gas and oil after being shunted from the EU over the past year due to the sanctions standoff between Brussels and Moscow.
Putin and Xi will also discuss expanding military cooperation in the presence of the two countries’ defense ministers, he added.
The talks will conclude with the presidents signing a declaration on deepening bilateral relations and expanding economic ties between Russia and China, the aide said.
The talks in Moscow will give “new impetus” to the rapidly developing relationship between neighbors, in which there is “no leader and no follower”, and the parties trust each other, Ushakov stressed.