Russia, China strengthen strategic partnership, oppose NATO expansion

Asia-Pacific, Europe, News February 5, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

The friendship between Moscow and Beijing ‘has no limits’, joint statement says

The leaders of Russia and China opposed the further expansion of NATO and accused the U.S. and the West of stoking instability as they met ahead of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Beijing on February 4.

This was the first face-to-face talk between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in nearly two years since the pandemic. They declared in a detailed joint statement that the “Friendship between the two States has no limits, there are no ‘forbidden’ areas of cooperation.”

China and Russia are committed to “deepening back-to-back strategic cooperation” in the face of complex changes, Xi said. “This is a strategic decision that has far-reaching influence on China, Russia, and the world,” he added.

Enlargement of NATO opposed

Russia and China said they “oppose further enlargement of NATO” and called the organization to “abandon its ideologized Cold War approaches”. The statement comes amid military tensions at the Ukrainian border where Russia has amassed 100,000 troops.

The two countries said “seriously concerned” by the trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom (AUKUS) and the negative impact of the United States’ Indo-Pacific strategy on regional peace and stability. “Russia and China believe that such actions are contrary to the objectives of security and sustainable development of the Asia-Pacific region, increase the danger of an arms race in the region, and pose serious risks of nuclear proliferation.”

_{Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, on February 4, 2022. (Image Credit – Kremlin)}

Russia-China strengthen cooperation

President Putin unveiled new Russian oil and gas deals with China worth an estimated $117.5 billion, bolstering an energy alliance. The two sides agreed on several agreements including cooperation in ensuring compatibility and interoperability of GLONASS and BeiDou navigation satellite systems, a roadmap for high-quality development of Russian-Chinese trade in goods and services. The two sides have signed a memorandum of understanding to promote investment cooperation in sustainable development, cooperation in the field of low carbon development between Rosneft and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), and collaboration in the field of information development and digitalization between Rosneft and Huawei Technologies till 2027.

World leaders at Beijing Olympics

Putin is the most high-profile guest in attendance at the 2022 Beijing Olympics where many western nations chose not to send any political representatives. He was joined by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, Singapore’s President Halimah Yacob, Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi of the United Arab Emirates, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar, and leaders of Central Asian nations among other dignitaries. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also attended.

The U.S., Britain, and a handful of others aren’t sending dignitaries to the Beijing Winter Games as part of a diplomatic boycott, but the Chinese capital is still attracting an array of world leaders for Friday’s opening ceremony.