Xi, Putin to hold talks as Winter Olympics kick off

Beijing. – The  Winter Olympic Games will open today, and a new stage of China-Russia relations will begin. President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin will meet face to face for the first time in two years on the sidelines of a major global sporting event. Of all the Olympic sports, the biathlon is best suited to express the meaning of this meeting.

The Chinese-Russian Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, which was to expire this February, has been extended for another five years.

Bilateral trade in 2021 reached a record of nearly US$150 billion. Defence ministers for the first time approved the joint roadmap for the development of military cooperation from 2021 to 2025.

Chinese and Russian strategic bombers continue to patrol the vicinity of American bases in Japan and South Korea in general formation. For the first time, scientists have agreed to jointly build the International Lunar Research Station.

The “comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era,” which President Xi and Putin agreed on, is being filled with concrete content.

There are still some problems. So far, bottlenecks in finance have not been eliminated. It is not yet possible to achieve mutual recognition of Covid-19 vaccines, which leads to a virtual ban on communication between Russians and Chinese and a reduction in flights and road traffic. These problems that naturally arise in the relations of the two neighboring countries are waiting to be solved during their top leaders’ meeting.

In addition to the preparations of their diplomats and advisors, Presidents Xi and Putin will discuss much more complex issues. Looking eye to eye, they will talk about the cold war waged against China and Russia by the US and its allies. On both fronts, the Eastern and Western, the red lines have already been reached and it is quite possible that they will be accidentally or deliberately crossed.

The island of Taiwan and Ukraine are being “pumped up” with weapons; they are being pushed to suicidal actions by more and more formidable resolutions and promises of support “in case of emergency.” What will be the actions of China and Russia “in case of emergency,” what forms of diplomatic, informational, economic or even military support can be counted on? This may become the main topic of the meeting. – Global Times