China-Russia relations: Xi Jinping says Beijing is willing to mediate with Moscow to end Ukraine war

Name: Donetsk residents yearn for reprieve as Russian attacks leave millions of Ukrainians in the dark
Uploaded: 2022-12-21T13:00:18.000Z
Duration: 2 min 50 s
Description: Donetsk residents yearn for reprieve as Russian attacks leave millions of Ukrainians in the dark

Dmitry Medvedev says two countries should advance cooperation in trade, energy, agriculture to resist pressure from outside

Former Russian president says his country is ‘willing to resolve the problems it faces through peace talks’

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Deputy head of Russia’s Security Council and chairman of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet on December 21, 2022 amid intense international scrutiny of their ties since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. Photo: EPA-EFE

Laura Zhou

Published: 9:00pm, 21 Dec 2022

China is willing to play a role to mediate with Russia to end the Ukraine war, Chinese President Xi Jinping told former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev in Beijing, as the two sides agreed to continue advancing their strategic partnership amid challenges from the West.

The remarks were made as Xi hosted Medvedev, a loyal ally to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the chairman of United Russia, the ruling party, in downtown Beijing’s Diaoyutai Guest House on Wednesday.

Medvedev, who served as president of Russia between 2008 and 2012, was the first senior Russian official to visit Beijing since Xi secured an unprecedented third term as the Communist Party’s general secretary in October.

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Donetsk residents yearn for reprieve as Russian attacks leave millions of Ukrainians in the dark

Beijing’s ties with Moscow have been under scrutiny since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, as China refused to join the West in condemning Russia.

Meanwhile, the sides significantly stepped up economic and political cooperation after the US and European powers imposed sanctions on Russia to force Putin to end the war.

During the meeting on Wednesday, Xi told Medvedev that their countries’ ties had “withstood the test of international changes” over the past decade.

“China is willing to work with Russia to take bilateral relations forward in the new era and jointly promote global governance in a more just and reasonable direction,” Xi said, according to Xinhua.

In response, Medvedev said the two ruling parties should work together to “actively” push forward cooperation in trade, energy, agriculture, “to jointly resist all kinds of pressure and unjust measures exerted from outside, and promote greater development of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation”.