China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi. AP
Moscow and Beijing strongly agreed on the US and settling the Ukraine issue, according to the Russian foreign ministry, following talks between their senior diplomats on Monday.
The announcement came as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi began a four-day visit to Moscow with a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the latest in a series of high-level discussions between the two key partners.
“The similarity of the parties’ positions regarding US actions in the international arena, including those of an anti-Russian and anti-Chinese nature, was stated,” Russia’s foreign ministry said.
“The parties discussed in detail the current state of affairs in Ukraine, noting the futility of attempts to resolve the crisis without taking into account Russia’s interests and, all the more so, without Russia’s participation,” it added.
Wang also briefed Lavrov on the details of his weekend conversations with US Vice President Joe Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, according to the statement.
Russia and China routinely brag about their “no limits” alliance, as well as their economic and military collaboration.
China has attempted to portray itself as a neutral party in the Ukraine war, while still providing Moscow with a critical diplomatic and financial lifeline as its international isolation worsens.
According to a Chinese official media summary, Wang restated Beijing’s position paper on the Ukraine war, which urged for peace negotiations but was received with scepticism when it was issued earlier this year by the US and NATO.
Wang told Lavrov the plan “takes into account the security concerns of all parties and is conducive to eliminating the root causes of the conflict”, according to China’s Xinhua.
“A permanent good-neighbourly friendship, comprehensive strategic cooperation, and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Russia will continue to contribute to the development and revitalisation of each country,” he added.
During his visit, Wang is due to hold security consultations at the invitation of Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of Russia’s security council.
President Xi Jinping made a state visit to Moscow in March and declared that relations between the two countries were entering a new era.
An aide to Vladimir Putin said in July that the Russian president was planning to visit China in October.
At the annual Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok last week, Putin told Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing that ties between Russia and China “have reached an absolutely unprecedented, historical level”.