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President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Xi Jinping of China stand for a photo at the opening of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation that kicked off on Oct. 18 in Beijing. (AP/Yonhap)

“My old friend, welcome to the Belt and Road Forum.”

On Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Beijing for the opening ceremony of the third Belt and Road Summit Forum for International Cooperation.

Meeting face-to-face for the first time since March, the two leaders discussed bilateral issues including economic and military issues, as well as international issues, such as the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

This is the fourth meeting between the Chinese and Russian leaders since Feb. 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine.

In his opening remarks, Xi said, “The political mutual trust between the two countries is continuously deepening. Together with Russia, China will firmly follow historical trends and follow the flow of global development,” according to the state news agency Xinhua.

“China stands ready to work with Russia to continue adding new dimensions to their practical cooperation with a keen grasp of the trend of the times and bearing in mind the fundamental interests of the two peoples,” Xi went on. The Chinese president also expressed a desire to exercise a sense of responsibility as great powers, contribute to international justice and impartiality, and promote the common development of the whole world alongside Russia.

Putin remarked that the goal of exceeding US$200 billion in annual trade between the two countries will “definitely” be achieved this year, noting that the turbulent times demanded close foreign policy coordination.

In February of last year, the two leaders had previously pledged “unlimited cooperation” between their countries and vowed to promote global multi-polarity in the face of Washington’s strategy in the Indo-Pacific. They also reaffirmed their intention to deepen bilateral strategic cooperation against the US.

The US has positioned China as a “competitor” and Russia as a “threat” in its National Security Strategy, released in October 2022.

The day before the two leaders’ meeting, the US Department of Commerce announced additional restrictions on semiconductor exports to China, and Russia has been under heavy sanctions since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Furthermore, Putin met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Sept. 13, and during the meeting they agreed to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. If China pushes for not only Sino-Russian cooperation against the US, but also a trilateral cooperation between North Korea, China and Russia, South Korea could be plunged into a major diplomatic and security crisis.

However, it does not appear that the two leaders had an in-depth conversation on diplomacy between Russia and North Korea. In the post-meeting statements released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin, there was no specific mention of the issue.

By Choi Hyun-june, Beijing correspondent

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]