China-Russia relationship is important for the world, says ambassador to Moscow

Zhang Hanhui was speaking to media outlets ahead of Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia next week and said trade ties would continue to grow

Xi’s visit will be closely watched to see if he puts forwards any proposals for peace with Ukraine when he meets Vladimir Putin

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Xi Jinping’s meeting with Vladimir Putin next week will be closely watched for any moves on Ukraine. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:32pm, 18 Mar 2023

A steady China-Russia relationship is crucial at a time of global turmoil, China’s ambassador to Russia has said ahead of the visit by President Xi Jinping next week.

The visit by Xi to Moscow will be closely watched by Western powers following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year and Friday’s announcement by the International Criminal Court that it had issued a warrant for Vladimir Putin’s arrest on suspicion of war crimes.

“The more turbulent the world is, the more important it is for China-Russia relations to move forward steadily,” Chinese ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui told Chinese and Russian media outlets on Friday.

This interview came just a couple of hours after Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying confirmed Xi would visit Russia between March 20 and 22.

Zhang did not offer any clues about whether Xi would put forward any proposals for negotiations with Ukraine, but a commentary published by state news agency Xinhua on Friday said China would “actively promote peace talks. and play a constructive role for a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine crisis.”

The commentary said a 12-point position paper published by Beijing last month provided a feasible proposal for resolving the crisis. The European Union has already dismissed the paper as taking Russia’s side.