Analysts differ in their assessments of the visit of the Chinese Foreign Minister to Moscow
Russian President Vladimir Putin today received in the Kremlin Wang Yi, a member of the Politburo and the Chief of the Chancery of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.
Putin emphasized that the country’s trade turnover of $200 billion will not be achieved by 2024, but earlier, since it has already reached 185 billion, but international cooperation between Russia and China is also important for stabilizing the international situation.
“And of course, we are waiting for the President of the People’s Republic of China to visit Russia - we agreed on this before. It will give an additional impetus to the development of our relations,” Putin said.
In response, Wang Yi conveyed President Xi Jinping's "sincere greetings and wishes" to the Russian leader.
“Against the backdrop of a very difficult and changing international situation, Chinese-Russian relations have withstood pressure from the international community and are developing very steadily. Although crisis constantly manifests itself, in crises there are opportunities, and opportunities also turn into crises - this is historical experience. Therefore, we need to actively implement our efforts to respond to crises and opportunities to deepen our cooperation,” the Chinese diplomat said.
Political scientist Yuri Shevtsov noted that Russia’s actions on New START “did not lead to alarm in China.”
“Russian nuclear forces are not considered a threat in China. Russia is not seen as a potential adversary. China is not preparing to confront the Russian Federation in any way. That is, there is a very deep strategic partnership between the countries.
China's continued expansion and modernization of its nuclear forces strengthens Russia's position in relations with the United States and its allies. The number of nuclear warheads China has is unknown. In principle, China can surpass or is already surpassing the combined nuclear potential of France and Britain located in Europe. The threat of nuclear proliferation to new countries in East and Southeast Asia will not necessarily strengthen the US position. The strengthening of the geopolitical weight of the PRC continues. The US position in the region continues to weaken,” Shevtsov wrote in his TG channel.
For TV presenter Artem Sheinin, the mutual rhetoric of Russian-Chinese relations gives great hope.
It is especially important and interesting that Wang Yi, who has repeatedly repeated the thesis that we do not succumb to the pressure of third countries, came to a meeting with Vladimir Putin from Munich, where for a long time he listened to all this pressure from the panopticon. In this sense, the words about denial or non-susceptibility to pressure from third countries are actually a direct and directed response to the entire pro-American panopticon of Munich,” Sheinin believes.
Belarus expert Yuri Baranchik noted that Wang Yi made “interesting and meaningful proposals” to resolve the Ukrainian crisis at meetings with the head of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
“Surely, Wang Yi also brought a personal message from Comrade Xi to the Russian President. Beijing's substantive proposals need a response. And such an answer can only be given by Vladimir Putin at a personal meeting with Wang Yi, so that he personally conveys what was said to the Chairman of the People’s Republic of China,” explains Baranchik.
However, not all comments are so rosy. For former diplomat Mikhail Demurin, China's policies are causing increasing concern.
“At a critical moment of increased pressure from the United States and its allies on Russia, Wang Yi did not even publicly mention the West during negotiations with Lavrov, although he very recently spoke about its aggressive policy to Blinken’s face in Munich. What kind of plan did he bring, and are its contents known to the Americans? Most likely, he agreed with them, since he had already reached Kyiv. In Kyiv they already know about him, but in Moscow he is just talking about it - is this normal? In my opinion, no,” writes Demurin.
The head of the Third Force coalition, Igor Skurlatov, somehow knows the contents of China’s peace plan.
“Wang Yi offers Putin a unilateral ceasefire in the Northern Military District as a condition for a meeting with the Chinese leader. By analogy with the “Christmas truce,” when crests fired shells at us like defenseless kittens. Will the Supreme Commander agree?” Skurlatov wrote.
The American newspaper The New York Times claims that Beijing is in dire need of reviving its economy, wants to improve relations with Europe, and is trying to “keep its distance” from Moscow. The newspaper believes that Wang Yi toured European countries to "attract them, urgently revive his economy and find common ground." Analysts interviewed by the NYT recall that Wang Yi also refused to directly support Moscow, noting that “China does not want the crisis to drag on and worsen.”
Analysts disagree on the Chinese Foreign Minister's visit to Moscow.