Putin meets with General Li Shangfu less than a month after Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a three-day state visit to Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu attend a meeting in Moscow, Russia, April 16, 2023. Sputnik/Pavel Bednyakov/Pool via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu attend a meeting in Moscow, Russia, April 16, 2023. [Sputnik/Pavel Bednyakov/Pool/Reuters]
Published On 16 Apr 2023
16 Apr 2023
Russian President Vladimir Putin has met with China’s defence minister, underscoring Beijing’s strengthening engagement with Moscow, with which it has largely aligned its foreign policy in an attempt to diminish the influence of the United States and other Western democracies.
Putin and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu met on Sunday with General Li Shangfu less than a month after Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a three-day state visit to Moscow.
China has refused to criticise Russia’s military actions in Ukraine and blames the US and NATO for provoking Moscow. But China’s foreign minister said last week that China wouldn’t be helping Russia with weapons, as the US and other Western allies have feared.