Russian President Vladimir Putin, who just took office on May 7, is conducting a visit to China. This is the first country to which the Russian leader, who has ruled the country since 2000, has traveled.
There are reasons for this. Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, China has become not only Russia’s principal trading partner, but also its key supporter. Instead of joining the collective Western sanctions against Russia, China continued to supply it with strategically important goods and raw materials. The appeals and threats of Western leaders failed to sway President Xi, who refused to participate in the peace summit on Ukraine in Switzerland and even discouraged foreign ministry officials from receiving the Ukrainian ambassador.
In 2023, trade turnover between Russia and China increased by a quarter, setting a new record of $240 billion. Investment cooperation is actively developing: at the talks it was reported that more than 80 priority projects worth about 200 billion dollars are being implemented or are prepared for implementation through the specialized intergovernmental commission. The ruble and yuan share in Russian-Chinese commercial transactions already exceeds 90 percent. The joint statement adopted by Russia and China at the summit on deepening relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation is filled with optimism.
Vladimir Putin knows how to express his appreciation. This time around, he brought to Beijing not Russian ice cream, which President Xi adores, but an American Patriot SAM launcher. Owing to the corruption of Ukrainian military personnel, it fell into the hands of Russian troops in the Donetsk region of Ukraine this March with a full payload, while the other vehicles were destroyed by the Iskander missile fire.
Now China, like Russia, will have an opportunity to study the essential specifications of the top-notch U.S. anti-aircraft system. It should be taken into account that Taiwan currently has nine Patriot batteries in service, which cover Taipei, the port of Kaohsiung and other key facilities on the island.
According to diplomatic sources, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken came to Beijing to persuade China not to accept the Russian gift, but his mission was futile.
Beijing continues to build up its economic and military muscle, and Russia is helping it to do so. This cannot but cause concern in Washington, but the authoritarian leaders of Russia and China seem to have finally ceased to take U.S. opinion into account. Putin’s imperial gift to the Chinese leader just proved it.
