During his visit to China, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping on various issues, including Ukraine, trade and the United States. While China also wants to keep Europe and America happy, the country has good relations with Russia. What do they have in common anyway? “They both want a new world order in which all powers have something to contribute,” said correspondent Joost Boseman in Moscow.

The two world leaders have met more than forty times. According to Bosman, the visit is primarily focused on the fact that Putin was sworn in as president last week. Putin pointed out that it is a good habit to visit the country closest to your heart. That is why he traveled to China.’ Last March it was the opposite. Xi Jinping was re-elected, after which he met with Putin. ‘They want to show their close bond with this.’

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Trade

But Putin doesn’t just come to drink tea. “A very serious delegation also traveled with Putin,” Bosman insists, including the boss of Russia’s biggest oil company, Rosneft, and the new defense minister, Andrei Belusov. This is because Russia also hopes to gain something from the visit. The country wants to get rid of its gas, but can no longer do so. “We see Gazprom lose $7 billion at the beginning of May. This has not happened in 25 years. Russia is trying to get that gas to China.’

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Russia’s problem is that China needs some, but not as much as Russia wants, Boseman explains. Also, China can get gas from Central Asia. Also, China’s economy is about ten times larger than Russia’s. Russia doesn’t have many friends after the Ukraine invasion. “In effect, this means that China has all the conditions to have a partnership that Beijing wants. Russia should really listen to that.’

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China

At the same time, pressure is being put on China from Europe and America. For example, President Joe Biden signed an executive order late last year declaring that Chinese banks that cooperated in supplying goods that could be used by Russia in the war in Ukraine could face sanctions. “You immediately saw that about five big Chinese banks are not accepting funds from Russian companies. So that has an impact on China. Then it will certainly be difficult to trade between the two countries, but China is afraid of losing the Western market. Because that is the biggest sales market for China, Russian Sales are many times bigger than the market.’

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What unites the two countries in any case is a mutual hatred of American hegemony in the world, Boseman explains. ‘They want to get rid of it. They both want a new world order in which all powers have a say. That is what Xi Jinping and Putin are clearly after.