A “very reasonable” world order. Five weeks after the invasion of Ukraine, Russian diplomat Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday reaffirmed the two countries’ “unlimited” friendship against the United States from his Chinese ally.
Russia, which has faced unprecedented sanctions against Ukrainian opposition and the unity of Western democracies, can only rely on Chinese power to escape total economic isolation.
In this context, Sergei Lavrov used the bilateral meeting with his fellow Prime Minister Wang Yi in eastern China to announce the arrival of the new world order that both countries dream of.
“We live at a very critical juncture in the history of international relations,” he said in a video interview with his ministry.
“Powerful, just, democratic”
“At the end of this stage, I firmly believe that the international situation will be much clearer and that we (…) will move towards a pluralistic, just and democratic world order,” he began.
In a statement, Moscow said the two countries wanted to “deepen coordination in foreign policy” and “expand joint action,” but did not announce concrete steps in support from China to Russia.
Chinese warning
Western powers have warned Beijing against any support for the rule of Russian President Vladimir Putin, which will allow Moscow to soften the impact of sanctions.
Chinese companies are cautious in dealing with Russia for fear of being affected by these sanctions. So Mr. Lavrov had to be content to reaffirm the unlimited nature of the friendship between the two countries in the face of the common American rival.
“Sino-Russian cooperation is unlimited. Our pursuit of peace is unlimited, our defense of security is unlimited, and our opposition to domination is unlimited,” the Chinese diplomatic spokesman said. Wang Wenpin questioned the Russian minister’s visit.
Friendship is “as solid as rock”
Since February 24, Beijing has refused to condemn the Ukrainian invasion. In early March, Wang Yi praised a “rock-solid” friendship with Moscow and defended “legitimate” concerns for Russia’s security.
A few weeks before the war, Vladimir Putin was warmly welcomed by his Chinese envoy, Xi Jinping, in Beijing. The two countries had already celebrated “unlimited” friendship and condemned NATO’s “extension”.
Afghanistan on the menu
Sergei Lavrov is scheduled to attend a two-day meeting in China on Afghanistan, during which he will rub his shoulders with a US diplomat. Beijing and Moscow saw evidence of US weakening in the withdrawal of US troops from Kabul.
The meeting, organized in Tunxi (eastern) in the greater Shanghai region, unites the seven neighboring countries of Afghanistan. Amir Khan Mutaki, the Taliban’s diplomatic leader in power in Kabul, is also expected, according to a new Chinese agency.
At the same time, a meeting of the “consultation mechanism” on Afghanistan is to be held with the participation of ambassadors from China, Russia, Pakistan and the United States.
US State Department spokesman Tom West, Washington’s special envoy to Afghanistan, is scheduled to attend the meeting.
Is it the reactionary platform of the separatists?
The meetings come a week after Wang Yi visited Kabul for the first time since Islamic fundamentalists came to power last August.
China shares a 76-kilometer high-altitude border with Afghanistan. Beijing has long feared that Beijing could become a breeding ground for separatists and Islamists from the majority Uyghur ethnic group in its vast area of Xinjiang (northwest).
This article was automatically published. Sources: ats / afp
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