Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin pledge to develop even closer China-Russia ties in energy and finance
- Bilateral trade, an important lifeline to Russia since it invaded Ukraine, is already at a record US$240 billion, with China its largest customer for crude oil
- Among other sectors ripe for new cooperation, a joint communique says, are innovative areas like artificial intelligence, software and network and data security
China and Russia vowed on Thursday to build even closer ties in their energy and finance sectors and extract more benefits from their partnership in other areas, underscoring their mutual dependence in the face of Western sanctions.
Both countries plan further cooperation in oil, natural gas, liquefied natural gas, coal, electricity and other fields “according to market principles”, according to a joint communique released after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Beijing.
The leaders pledged to ensure the stable operation of cross-border infrastructure for unimpeded transport of energy.
Chinese and Russian firms will also seek to implement large energy projects and build cooperation in areas such as renewable energy, hydrogen and carbon markets, the statement added.
Expanding such cooperation will buttress an already solid mutual economic reliance. Last year, record bilateral trade of US$240 billion provided an important lifeline for Russia, which is under blanket sanctions from Western countries since it invaded Ukraine in 2022.
For China, Russia is its largest source of crude oil imports as well as an important destination of Chinese electric vehicles – which are themselves a target of European inquiries and US tariffs.