President Xi Jinping of China and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed eliminating dollar-denominated trade and a new arrangement to boost Russian gas exports to China on Friday.
In a display of unity on the sidelines of the Beijing Winter Olympics, the two leaders emphasised their “unshakeable” strategic collaboration, warning the West to halt its eastward encroachment.
Because of the volatility surrounding the use of the dollar, Putin and Xi emphasised the necessity to expand bilateral commerce in national currencies, according to the Kremlin.
It comes after US Vice President Joe Biden warned that if Russia invades Ukraine, Russian companies could lose their ability to deal in dollars as part of sweeping penalties.
The US and its Western allies accuse Moscow of deploying military forces along the Ukrainian border in preparation for an invasion. Russia, on the other hand, denies the accusations, claiming that the buildup is logical and benign.
The Kremlin praised the relationship between the two major countries as an advanced collaboration with a unique character, describing the meeting as “warm and substantive.”
They opposed NATO expansion and accused the US of fomenting instability in the region in a lengthy joint statement. The military alliance’s ‘Cold War attitude’ to foreign affairs was also criticised by both sides.
The Kremlin released a 5,300-word joint statement saying, “Russia and China stand against attempts by external forces to undermine security and stability in their common surrounding territories.”
Both countries “aim to prevent involvement by outside forces in the internal affairs of sovereign countries under any pretext, oppose colour revolutions, and expand cooperation in the aforementioned areas,” according to the joint statement.
The Chinese-Russian cooperation has “taken on a truly unparalleled character,” Putin told his Chinese counterpart.
According to the statement, he stressed, “It is an example of a respectful partnership that enables each of us improve while supporting each other’s development.”
Xi remarked after his meeting with Putin that the talks “would inject more vigour into China-Russia relations,” according to Chinese media.
According to sources, Putin announced that Moscow is working on a new arrangement to provide China with 10 billion cubic metres of natural gas from its Far East territory.
Russia, a major hydrocarbon exporter and Beijing’s third-biggest gas supplier, has been strengthening ties with China, the world’s largest energy consumer.
During his discussion with Xi, Putin added, “Our oilmen have provided extremely good new proposals on hydrocarbon deliveries to the People’s Republic of China.”
“And a step forward was made in the gas business,” he continued, referring to a new contract with China for the supply of 10 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year from Russia’s Far East.
As part of its anticipated anti-Russian sanctions in the case of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Washington cautioned Chinese corporations on Thursday with repercussions if they try to avoid any US-imposed export limits on Moscow.
The warning came during statements by US State Department spokesman Ned Price in response to a declaration by China’s foreign ministry that their positions on Ukraine had been coordinated in a meeting of their top diplomats earlier in the day in Beijing.
“We have a range of instruments that we can deploy if we find foreign corporations, including those in China, trying to backfill, evade, or go around US export control actions,” Price said during his daily press briefing.
Price also cautioned Moscow that a tighter connection with Beijing would not compensate for the consequences of significant sanctions imposed by the US and its Western allies in the event of an invasion of Ukraine.
“If Russia believes that a tighter connection with (China) will enable it to avoid some of those consequences, that is not the case,” he insisted. “It will really make the Russian economy more brittle in many aspects.”
The Xi-Putin encounter, as well as Washington’s newest caution to Chinese companies not to avoid export curbs against Russia, comes as US authorities claim to have new proof of a supposed Russian false flag invasion of Ukraine.
The Washington Post, citing “people familiar with the situation,” stated Thursday that the Biden Administration is preparing to publish an alleged Russian scheme whose contents have been declassified by American intelligence.
Russia has responded angrily to reports that the US wants to deploy thousands of troops to Eastern Europe, and has urged that tensions over Ukraine be de-escalated.
On Thursday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, “It is evident that these are not efforts aimed at de-escalating tensions, but rather actions that tend to rising tension.”
On Wednesday, the US announced the deployment of over 3,000 additional troops to Poland, Germany, and Romania. The US has already deployed 8,500 troops on high alert in Eastern Europe in preparation for deployment and to reinforce NATO’s presence in the region.
“We have repeatedly urged our American counterparts to refrain from exacerbating tensions on the European continent. Unfortunately, the Americans are still doing so,” Peskov stated.
