
China's Xi Jinping arrives in Moscow hailing historic ties and true friendship
President
Xi Jinping has arrived in Moscow for a high-profile
state visit underscoring efforts to strengthen ties with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin amid growing trade pressures from the US and scepticism from European allies.
Advertisement
Upon landing at Moscow's Vnukovo-2 airport on Wednesday afternoon local time, Xi expressed confidence that the trip would deepen bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
'I will meet with President Putin to have an in-depth exchange of views over bilateral relations, practical cooperation as well as major international and regional issues of mutual interest,' Xi said in a written statement.
'[This] will inject strong impetus into the growth of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era.'
He also hailed the friendship between China and Russia, calling the two countries 'good neighbours that cannot be moved away, true friends who share weal and woe, and good partners that enable each other's success'.
Advertisement
Hours before Xi touched down, local authorities said a number of Ukrainian drones were brought down near the capital, and airports across Moscow were forced to temporarily shut down.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Pop Mart's Labubu becomes bait for China's Ping An Bank to lure young customers
Hoping the world's trendiest monster will scare up some new customers, China's Ping An Bank is rewarding those who open new accounts with a Pop Mart Lababu doll amid fierce competition for young customers among Chinese retail banks. New clients who open a savings account and deposit more than 50,000 yuan (US$6,954) for at least three months could receive a blind box from the first or second series of the Chinese toy retailer's popular collectibles, according to media reports. Customers who also apply for a credit card could receive a blind box from the third series. With its pointy ears, sharp teeth and mischievous grin, Labubu has attained viral popularity among young consumers worldwide and driven a heady rise in Pop Mart's revenue and share price . The plush figures – often sold in opaque boxes so that buyers cannot know exactly which one they are getting – typically retail for around 99 yuan on the mainland, but they sell for considerably more in other regions, such as the US and Middle East . Prices can soar on the secondary market due to high demand and limited supply. Ping An Bank's campaign with the sought-after figure quickly drew attention and went viral on RedNote, an Instagram-style platform popular for lifestyle tips. In a post on Monday that garnered more than 1,100 likes overnight, a Sichuan province-based user called Ouqixilanhua claimed to have rushed to a local branch after learning of the giveaway. 'I opened a [bank] account and made a deposit right away,' the user said. 'Money has to be saved somewhere, and I couldn't pass up a free collectible.' Shen Meng, a director at Beijing-based investment bank Chanson & Company, said Chinese retail banks were struggling to attract and retain young customers amid low interest rates, while the number of retail banks 'far exceeded' what the market needed. The total number of retail banking customers was on the decline as the country's population was dropping and ageing, with overall income levels slipping and unemployment running high among young people, Shen added.


South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Kyiv rocked by one of Ukraine war's largest Russian air attacks
Russia launched one of its largest air strikes on Kyiv in over three years of war and struck a maternity ward in the southern city of Odesa in attacks that killed at least two people, officials said on Tuesday. The overnight strikes followed Russia's biggest drone assault of the war on Ukraine on Monday and were part of intensified bombardments that Moscow says are retaliation for attacks by Ukrainian forces on Russia. Loud explosions shook Kyiv and blasts and fires lit up the sky in the early hours of Tuesday morning, leaving palls of heavy smoke over the city, Reuters witnesses said. At least four people were treated in hospital after seven of the capital's 10 districts were hit, city officials said. An explosion overnight in Kyiv, Ukraine. Photo: Reuters 'Today was one of the largest attacks on Kyiv,' President Volodymyr Zelensky said. 'Russian missile and Shahed (drone) strikes drown out the efforts of the United States and others around the world to force Russia into peace.'


South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
China-Niger ties challenge Beijing's cornerstone non-interference policy
Since the 2023 coup that ousted the president of Niger , Mohamed Bazoum, Beijing has consistently sought to strengthen relations with the country's military government. In line with its non-interference policy , one of the cornerstones of China's foreign policy that states that countries should not meddle in the domestic political, economic or social systems of other countries, China swiftly embraced the military junta in Niger. Notably, China provided the new military government with a substantial financial lifeline of about US$400 million in the form of an oil-backed loan to be repaid via crude oil shipments over 12 months, which helped address an immediate cash shortage. 16:09 How China is reshaping its economic ties with Africa How China is reshaping its economic ties with Africa Yet relations with China have been strained since March when the junta expelled three Chinese oil executives over disparities between the salaries of expatriate staff and lower-paid local workers and revoked the licence of a Chinese-owned hotel in Niamey, citing 'discriminatory practices and administrative violations'. The dispute escalated last month when Niger ordered China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and its Soraz oil refinery to terminate the contracts of expatriate employees with more than four years' service. Observers said Niger's dispute with Chinese oil companies underscored the limits of Beijing's non-interference policy – a long-standing Chinese policy which, in practice, meant China remained essentially regime-agnostic. This approach, while intended to avoid entanglement in domestic affairs, incurred significant economic costs for Beijing, especially as some nations were experiencing a rise in nationalism, they added. According to Paul Nantulya, a China-Africa specialist from the National Defence University's Africa Centre for Strategic Studies in Washington, China's policy entails regime strengthening since Beijing tends to invest heavily in the economic priorities of the regimes or ruling parties in question.