Both sides will bring wish list to expected Vladimir Putin-Xi Jinping meeting next week
- US says North Korea has transferred weapons to Moscow for use in Ukraine and, without naming China, threatens sanctions against those who enable such deals
- Rumours that the Russian leader will be the ‘special guest’ at Xi’s Belt and Road 10th anniversary celebration
Though Russian President Vladimir Putin is rumoured to be the “special guest” next week at the 10th anniversary celebration of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s multibillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, experts say the two “no-limits” partners will have a great deal more to discuss.
According to Elizabeth Wishnick of the Virginia-based Centre for Naval Analyses, a federally funded research group, while Putin will seek additional support from Beijing – “at least in messaging” – on Ukraine, “Xi Jinping would also like some things from him.”
“Probably some answers about the coup attempt by the Wagner Group, and what happened with Kim Jong-un when the North Korean leader visited President Putin in Vladivostok last month,” she said on Friday.
Wishnick spoke just hours before US President Joe Biden’s administration confirmed that North Korea had transferred military equipment to Moscow for use in Ukraine.
02:46
North Korean leader Kim to travel abroad for meeting with Russian leader Putin in September: report
“Our information indicates that in recent weeks, North Korea has provided Russia with more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions,” said White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.