CNN –
Chinese leader Xi Jinping will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday in a show of diplomatic support as Moscow grapples with growing international isolation over its faltering invasion of Ukraine.
At their meeting, Russian state media reported that Putin condemned US “provocations” in the Taiwan Strait and said he “highly appreciates” China’s “balanced position” on the Ukraine crisis .
The two authoritarian leaders have emerged as close partners in recent years, driven by growing conflict with the West and a strong personal bond.
China has offered tacit support to Russia over Ukraine, while Moscow has backed Beijing and criticized Washington for US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei in August. Beijing responded with unprecedented military exercises around the self-governing democratic island, which it claims as its own territory.
In a statement released by the Kremlin, Putin said: “The foreign policy tandem of Moscow and Beijing plays a key role in ensuring global and regional stability. We jointly advocate the formation of a just, democratic and multipolar world order based on international norms and the central role of the UN”.
The two are holding talks in Uzbekistan at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a security-focused regional grouping that also includes India, Pakistan and four Central Asian nations.
In a symbolic show of strength and unity, the Russian and Chinese navies conducted joint patrols and exercises in the Pacific Ocean just hours before their leaders’ meeting, according to Russia’s Defense Ministry.
The meeting, their first face-to-face since the invasion, comes at a potentially consequential time for Putin, whose troops are retreating en masse in northeastern Ukraine, losing more territory in a week than they captured in five months
Putin is one of the few world leaders Xi has met face-to-face since the start of 2020. The Russian leader traveled to Beijing for the Winter Olympics this year and was seen as the most prominent world leader who joined it. the event Several Western nations declared a diplomatic boycott, citing China’s human rights record.
It was at that meeting that the two leaders framed their “boundless partnership” and released a 5,000-word document expressing their shared opposition to “further NATO expansion.”
China has refused to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as it ramps up economic assistance to its neighbor, boosting bilateral trade to record levels in a boost for Russian business amid Western sanctions.
For Xi, meanwhile, the meeting comes as part of his first trip outside China’s borders in more than two years, and just weeks before he seeks to secure a rule-breaking third term at a major political meeting in Beijing , a move that cemented his status as China’s most powerful leader in decades.
China has turned increasingly inward since the start of the pandemic. Xi’s trip to Central Asia is a return to the world stage and a chance for him to show that, despite growing tensions with the West, China still has friends and partners and is ready to reassert its global influence.
In his first stop, Xi visited Kazakhstan, where he unveiled his flagship Belt and Road initiative in 2013, a massive infrastructure project stretching from East Asia to Europe.
In a meeting with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Wednesday, Xi said China would like to partner with Kazakhstan to “remain pioneers in Belt and Road cooperation.”
Xi also told Tokayev that “China will always support Kazakhstan in maintaining national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Chinese state media reported.
The Chinese leader traveled to Uzbekistan on Wednesday evening and met with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. He also met with the presidents of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan on Thursday.