China and Russia pledge to defend each other’s core interests, ‘jointly face challenges’ as Moscow faces new sanctions
- In communique issued after meeting led by Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Moscow reaffirms support for ‘one China’ and opposes Taiwan independence
- The two sides vow to ‘closely coordinate’ under multilateral frameworks including Brics, G20, SCO and Apec
The communique said China and Russia would continue to jointly face challenges and “firmly support each other in safeguarding their respective core interests”.
None of the Chinese or Russian official statements following the meetings with Xi and Li mentioned the conflict in Ukraine. But in the joint communique, the two nations said they opposed unilateral sanctions that had not been approved by the United Nations Security Council.
“[Sanctions] have a huge negative impact on the world economy and finance,” the communique said.
They also jointly acknowledged Iran’s admission as a full member of the SCO this year, saying it would help expand cooperation under the regional political, security and economic organisation.
Iran was also among six new members to join the Brics bloc as part of a historic expansion of the group, which is increasingly seen as a platform for China and Russia to rival the Group of 7.
Beijing and Moscow also agreed to expand people-to-people exchanges, including in academics, healthcare and sports. They will also explore mechanisms to allow long-term visas with multiple entries.
Speaking in Beijing on Monday, Russian deputy prime minister Dmitry Chernyshenko noted that China is Russia’s biggest source of tourists, adding that he expected tourism between the two countries to exceed 1 million trips this year.