By Oyintari Ben
BEIJING – Despite opposition from the West as the crisis in Ukraine carried on, the Russian prime minister signed a number of deals with China on Wednesday while visiting Beijing, describing bilateral relations as at an all-time high.
Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin spoke with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and was scheduled to meet with President Xi Jinping. He was the highest-ranking Russian official to visit Beijing since Moscow dispatched thousands of troops to Ukraine in February 2022.
Due to China’s increased need for oil and gas, Moscow is relying more on Beijing for support than China is on Russia as the war in Ukraine enters its second year, and Russia feels the impact of Western sanctions more and more.
With the Group of Seven nations’ weekend declarations singling both countries out on a variety of problems, including Ukraine, the pressure from the West has remained strong.
In their encounter, Mishustin informed Li that “relations between Russia and China are currently at an unprecedented high level.”
In his words, “They are distinguished by mutual respect of each other’s interests, the desire to respond to issues together and the pressure of unjust sanctions from the collective West, which is associated with growing turmoil in the international arena.
“As our Chinese friends say, unity makes it possible to move mountains.”
Among the memoranda of understanding that were signed were one on the export of agricultural products to China, one on the cooperation in sports, and one on the strengthening of investment cooperation in trade services.
According to the Interfax news agency, Russia expects its energy exports to China to increase by 40% this year, and the two nations are also talking about Russia receiving Chinese technology.
According to Steve Tsang, director of The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) China Institute in London, “With sanctions against Russia providing new opportunities for China, it is hardly surprising that China would be happy to engage actively, if not proactively, with Russia economically, so long as whatever relationships they forge will not trigger secondary sanctions against China.”
The visit underlines China’s approach regarding the conflict in Ukraine, particularly its commitment to supporting Putin and professing neutrality, Tsang said.
