The Russian president arrives in China for two-day visit

Russian President Vladimir Putin told Chinese President Xi Jinping at a meeting in Beijing on Thursday that Russian-Chinese cooperation wasn’t directed against any other power and was a stabilizing factor for the world.

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in China on Thursday for a two-day visit to meet his counterpart Xi Jinping and try to get more support for his war efforts in Ukraine.

This is the Russian president’s first foreign trip since his re-election in March and his second to China in just over six months.

The Asian giant is a crucial economic lifeline for Russia, which is suffering from Western sanctions imposed over its military offensive in Ukraine.

After recently returning from a tour of France, Serbia and Hungary, Xi Jinping defended the right to establish normal economic relations with neighboring Russia.

China is particularly benefiting from cheap Russian energy imports.

During their meeting, Putin told his Chinese counterpart, “It’s very important that relations between Russia and China aren’t opportunistic and aren’t directed against anyone, as our cooperation in world affairs today is one of the main factors of stability on the international stage”.