Putin fails to convince Xi to agree to build gas pipeline to China - WP
Russian dictator vladimir putin has once again failed to convince Chinese leader Xi Jinping to agree to build a major new gas pipeline during a visit to Beijing,
Putin had hoped to use the visit to finally win Xi's approval for russia's long-standing proposal to build the Power of Siberia-2 pipeline, which would carry 50 billion cubic meters of russian natural gas to China annually. But that effort appeared to have failed on Wednesday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday that there was no information yet on the specific timing of the project's launch. "In fact, during the negotiations, the president noted that there is already a general agreement on the main parameters of the Power of Siberia-2. There is an agreement on the route and method of construction. Some details still need to be worked out, but in general, such an agreement already exists," Peskov said.
However, just days after U.S. President Donald Trump's visit to Beijing, Xi and putin appeared to criticize the U.S. war on Iran and the U.S. military's attempt to overthrow Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
In a joint statement, Xi and putin condemned what they called "treacherous military strikes against other countries, the hypocritical use of negotiations as a cover to prepare such strikes, the assassination of leaders of sovereign states, the destabilization of the domestic political situation in these states and provoking regime change, and the brazen kidnapping of national leaders for trial."
Xi also said that a "complete cessation of hostilities" in the Middle East "is extremely urgent," and told putin during the talks, according to China's Xinhua news agency, that this would "help reduce disruptions to energy supply stability, smooth operation of industrial and logistics chains and the international trade order."
"Today's world is far from peace, unilateralism and hegemonism pose serious dangers, and the world faces the risk of returning to the law of the jungle," Xi told putin, according to the China-controlled agency.
China joined russia in calling for the eradication of what Moscow calls the "root causes" of its war against Ukraine. The demand, which China backed in a joint statement with russia, shows that Beijing continues to support Moscow's tough stance on overthrowing the pro-Western government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and ensuring that Ukraine never joins NATO.
The publication notes that despite the show of cooperation and friendship, tensions are brewing between the two countries under the surface, as Moscow increasingly relies on Beijing for China's purchases of russian energy resources and supplies of Chinese components to continue the war against Ukraine.
There is also deep distrust between the intelligence services of neighboring countries, and, according to Western officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic matters, russia is investigating at least one case of alleged espionage by China. However, both sides have avoided making the case public to minimize negative consequences.
Analysts note that Moscow is also increasingly concerned about China's role as a major supplier of components for Ukraine's drone industry, which has contributed to a significant increase in production volumes over the past year, although russia also depends on these supplies.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the Chinese Foreign Ministry called a report by the Financial Times, according to which Chinese leader Xi Jinping, in a conversation with US President Donald Trump, said that russian leader vladimir putin may regret the invasion of Ukraine, "pure fiction."