-Chinese, Russian Presidents hold vital meeting in Moscow aimed at bringing down Ukraine conflict
-Complex problems do not have simple solutions, Xi says in a signed article published by Russian media
-Putin says Russia-China relations serve as the cornerstone of regional and global stability
-Praises both countries for driving economic growth and securing the positive agenda in international affairs
From Our Correspondent
MOSCOW: Chinese President Xi Jinping met his “dear friend” Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday, seeking both to deepen economic ties with a counterweight ally to the West and to promote Beijing’s role as a potential peacemaker in Ukraine.
Xi was the first leader to meet the Russian president since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest war-rant for him on Friday over the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia during its year-old invasion of Ukraine.
Moscow said the charge was one of several “clearly hostile displays” and opened a criminal case against the ICC prose-cutor and judges. Beijing said the warrant reflected double standards.
Russia is presenting Xi’s trip, his first since securing an unprecedented third term this month, as evidence that it has a powerful friend in its standoff with a hostile West.
The two men greeted one another as “dear friend” when they met in the Kremlin on Monday afternoon before din-ner, to be followed by formal talks on Tuesday.
Putin told Xi he viewed China’s proposals for a resolution of the Ukraine conflict with respect and was also “slightly en-vious” of China’s rapid development in recent decades.
“China has created a very effective system for developing the economy and strengthening the state. It is much more effective than in many other countries,” he said.
China has released a broad 12-point proposal to solve the Ukraine crisis, while strengthening relations with Moscow.
Beijing has repeatedly dismissed Western accusations that it is planning to arm Russia but says it wants a closer energy partnership after boosting imports of Russian coal, gas and oil.
“Both sides are continuously strengthening political mutual trust, creating a new paradigm of relations between major powers,” Xi wrote in an article published in Russia ahead of his trip.
Xi said China’s Ukraine peace proposal, an unspecific document released last month, reflects global views.
“Complex problems do not have simple solutions,” he wrote in Rossiiskaya Gazeta, a daily published by the Russian government, according to a Reuters translation from Russian. Putin signed a “no limits” partnership with Xi last year shortly before he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine to end “a threat to Russia from its neighbour’s moves towards the West”.
Upon his arrival, Xi said in a written statement at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport, “It gives me great pleasure to once again set foot on the soil of Russia, our friendly neighbor, and pay a state visit to the Russian Federation at the invitation of President Vladimir Putin.”
The growth of China-Russia relations has not only brought tangible benefits to the people of our two countries, but also made important contributions to the development and progress of the world, Xi said.
A day earlier, Putin’s article titled “Russia and China: A Future-Bound Partnership” was also published in the People’s Daily, the flagship newspaper of the Communist Party of China.
The articles written by the two leaders comprehensively covered all important issues of China-Russia cooperation, in-cluding economy, trade, diplomacy, energy, aerospace industry, science and technology, as well as sports and culture, and both articles also addressed the Ukraine crisis.
Putin said in his article that “today, the Russia-China relations serve as the cornerstone of regional and global stability, driving the economic growth and securing the positive agenda in international affairs. They provide an example of harmonious and constructive cooperation between major powers.”
