BEIJING, May 20, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - President Xi Jinping hailed China and 
Russia's "unyielding" ties in talks with Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, as the 
pair met to underscore their alliance days after Donald Trump's own visit to 
Beijing.

The two countries' ties have deepened since Moscow's 2022 invasion of 
Ukraine, as Russia has become increasingly dependent on China, its main oil 
customer.

Putin was received by Xi outside Beijing's opulent Great Hall of the People 
in much the same fashion as Trump last week, complete with chanting children 
and military fanfare.

But the language was much warmer, with Xi telling the Russian leader Beijing 
and Moscow have "continuously deepened our political mutual trust and 
strategic coordination with a resilience that remains unyielding", according 
to Chinese state media.

Opening talks, both were quick to laud their countries' special ties as they 
extended their treaty of "friendly cooperation".

Putin, quoting a Chinese phrase, told Xi: "A day apart feels like three 
autumns", adding that relations had reached an "unprecedentedly high level" 
despite "unfavourable external factors", Russian media footage showed.

In an apparent swipe at the United States, Xi warned of "unilateral and 
hegemonic countercurrents running rampant" in the world.

In contrast to Trump's visit last week, which yielded little in the way of 
immediate concrete announcements, Putin and Xi signed a slew of agreements on 
Wednesday on trade, media and energy.

The two leaders later had talks over tea, which the Kremlin had previously 
said would be reserved for "the most important issues" such as Ukraine, Iran 
and relations with the US.

That session lasted around 1.5 hours before Putin headed to the airport, 
according to Russian media.

- Fossil fuel push -

Beneath the camaraderie, Putin is now perceived by many to be the junior 
partner in the relationship.

The Russian leader has been weakened over four years of the Ukraine conflict, 
with his country's economy shrinking in the first quarter of the year as 
factors such as wartime spending, labour shortages and sanctions take their 
toll.

Analysts believed Putin would use his visit to push for progress on the 
"Power of Siberia 2", a major natural gas pipeline running from Russia to 
China through Mongolia.

But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian media Wednesday that while 
the two sides had reached a "basic understanding" -- including on "the route 
and how it will be built" -- there was no "clear timeline", and "there are 
still some details to be worked out".

The US-Israeli war on Iran has hampered crude and gas flows from the Middle 
East, giving an opportunity for Putin to offer Russian energy sources as an 
alternative.

"Russia and China are actively cooperating in the energy sector... We are, of 
course, ready to continue reliably supplying all these types of fuel to the 
rapidly growing Chinese market," Putin said Wednesday.

His priorities may differ from China's, which wants the Middle East conflict 
concluded as soon as possible.

Underlining that, Xi told Putin on Wednesday that "a comprehensive ceasefire 
is of utmost urgency, resuming hostilities is even more inadvisable and 
maintaining negotiations is particularly important".

- 'Sovereign foreign policy' -

Xi has played host to a series of world leaders as an increasingly 
unpredictable United States under Trump has pushed many to shore up alliances 
with Beijing.

Many have urged him to use his influence with Russia and Iran to help bring 
an end to the respective conflicts there.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had asked Trump to discuss ending the 
war during his meetings with Xi last week.

The pair did talk about the issue, but the US president left China without a 
breakthrough.

Beijing has regularly called for talks to end the war in Ukraine, but has 
never condemned Russia for sending in troops -- presenting itself instead as 
a neutral party.

The two leaders talked about Ukraine, Chinese state media said after the 
visit had ended, without giving further details.

On Wednesday Putin said that Russia and China were "committed to an 
independent and sovereign foreign policy".

In a joint statement released by the Kremlin, Russia said it "positively 
assesses the objective and unbiased position of the Chinese side regarding 
the situation in Ukraine and welcomes China's aspiration to play a 
constructive role".