Chinese President Promises More Support for Russia

Chinese President Xi Jinping told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday that the two countries should "strengthen their mutual support," state agencies reported after a meeting between the two.

Xi said China and Russia should "put into practice the important consensus" reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin and "strengthen their mutual support in multilateral forums," according to China's official Xinhua news agency.

Beijing and Moscow should "unite the countries of the Global South and promote the development of the international order in a fairer and more reasonable direction," Xi said, according to the Chinese agency.

Russian news agency Tass reported that Xi received Lavrov in Beijing after a general meeting with foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

The SCO brings together 10 countries, including China, Russia, Iran, India, and Pakistan. Its goal is to act as a counterweight to Western organizations and strengthen cooperation on political, security, and trade issues.

Among the topics discussed was preparations for Putin's visit to China to participate in a SCO summit, Moscow said.

Lavrov met on Sunday with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to discuss issues including Ukraine and relations with the United States .

The Russian Foreign Minister arrived in China after a visit to North Korea, where he received assurances of support in the war against Ukraine, which began in February 2022.

Beijing, Moscow's diplomatic and economic ally, claims to have a neutral position in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

China, however, has never denounced Russia's more than three-year offensive in the former Soviet republic and has not called for a troop withdrawal. Many of Kyiv's allies view Beijing as providing support to Moscow.

The Chinese have frequently called for an end to the fighting, while accusing Western countries of prolonging the war by supplying weapons to Ukraine.