Putin touches down in Geneva
Each nation has heaped praise on the other ahead of Vladimir Putin’s summit with US President Joe Biden this week. The Russian leader declared relations to be at an “unprecedentedly high level” in an NBC interview on Monday, while China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian proclaimed “our friendship is unbreakable” in a news briefing.
But their tactical alliance has taken on more urgency since Biden came into office with a pledge to assert US leadership on the world stage. Under Biden, Washington has repeatedly singled out the two nations as the biggest threats to the rules-based international order, as it rallies allies to unite in an apparent ideological battle between democracy and autocracy.
Over the past few days, discussions on how to counter the authoritarian actions of Russia and China were featured prominently in both the Group of Seven (G7) summit in England and the NATO meeting in Brussels.
Despite the appearance of unity between Russia and China, the potential for friction exists.
Firstly, trade relations between the two are deeply imbalanced. China is Russia’s largest trading partner, while Russia is a far less significant trading partner to China. There could be geopolitical concerns too. Through its Belt and Road Initiative, China has expanded its economic influence in Central Asia, an area long deemed by Russia as its sphere of influence.
Observers have long seen growing Sino-Russian ties as a partnership of convenience driven by geopolitical and economic interests, after the two powers moved on from their past animosity. In the late 1950s, relations between Moscow and Beijing became strained, and were later characterized by deep mistrust, ideological disputes and border conflicts.
And now, in the absence of shared fundamental values, common ideologies and a formal military alliance, it remains to be seen just how deep and lasting their ties will be.
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