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Japan Today
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Today
China's Xi arrives in Moscow in show of support for Putin
Russian armoured infantry carriers, including fighting vehicles BMP-1AM Basurmanin, drive along a road on the day of a rehearsal for a military parade, which marks the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia, May 7, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov By Andrew Osborn and Laurie Chen Chinese President Xi Jinping flew into Moscow on Wednesday for talks with President Vladimir Putin and a pomp-filled visit that Kyiv has made clear it opposes after Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow shortly before he touched down. Xi, whose country buys more Russian oil and gas than any other, and which has thrown Moscow an economic lifeline that has helped it navigate Western sanctions imposed over its war in Ukraine, landed at Moscow's Vnukovo-2 airport soon after Russian authorities said they had brought down another Ukrainian drone outside the capital. It was the third day Ukraine has targeted Moscow with drones and one of Moscow's main airports was forced to temporarily suspend its activities less than three hours before Xi's arrival. When asked during a news briefing about air attacks by both sides on each others' capitals, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry did not comment on Xi's trip, saying only that the "top priority" was to avoid an escalation in tensions. The Kremlin said the attempted Ukrainian attacks on Moscow showed Kyiv's tendency to commit "acts of terrorism" and that Russia's intelligence services and military were doing everything necessary to ensure the security of upcoming World War Two commemorations which Xi is due to attend. Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday that Russia had launched its own air attack on Kyiv overnight, killing a mother and her son. Russia says it only targets military objects. Xi is the most powerful world leader expected at a military parade on Moscow's Red Square on Friday to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Soviet Union and its allies over Nazi Germany. His visit hands President Vladimir Putin an important diplomatic boost at a time when the Russian leader is keen to show his country is not isolated on the world stage. The Kremlin has touted Xi's presence, along with that of 28 other world leaders, as a sign of Russia's growing global authority. But Ukraine's Foreign Ministry - in comments that seemed directed at China whose troops are due to march on Red Square - on Tuesday urged countries not to send their militaries to participate in the May 9 parade, saying such participation would go against some countries' declared neutrality in the war. DRONES TARGETED MOSCOW Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that Russian air defense units had destroyed at least 14 Ukrainian drones headed for the Russian capital overnight. He later said at least two more had been brought down during the day. Xi has called for talks to end the war in Ukraine and has accused the U.S. of stoking the war with weapons supplies to Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has in the past urged him to try to persuade Putin to end the war. Xi is due to hold talks with the Russian leader on Thursday and to join other world leaders for the parade on Friday. His visit comes as U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to push Moscow and Kyiv to find a way to end the war in Ukraine, with both sides blaming each other for a lack of progress. Locked in a tariff war with the United States, Xi is expected to sign numerous agreements to deepen an already tight strategic partnership with Moscow, which has consistently seen China crowned Russia's biggest trading partner. Despite recent efforts under Trump to reset U.S.-Russia ties, Putin is expected to present a united front with Xi against Washington, whose dominance and "exceptionalism" both countries have questioned, arguing for a more multipolar world. In a signed article published by Russian media on Wednesday, Xi wrote that China and Russia must "firmly maintain the post-war international order." "The two sides should jointly resist any attempt to disrupt and undermine China-Russia friendship and mutual trust," read the text of the article, Chinese state media reported. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova called the visit "one of the central events in Russian-Chinese relations this year." "The World War Two focus is about the post-war international order and now the U.S. is dismantling or undermining it. So China and Russia will frame themselves as the defenders of the international order and the UN system, and oppose U.S. unilateralism and hegemony," said Yun Sun, a China politics analyst at the Stimson Center in Washington. In their talks, Putin and Xi will discuss the "most sensitive" issues, including energy cooperation and the proposed but yet to be built Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline to China, Yuri Ushakov, a top Kremlin aide, said. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
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First Post
07-05-2025
- Politics
- First Post
China's Xi arrives in Moscow in show of support for Putin
Chinese President Xi Jinping flew into Moscow on Wednesday for talks with President Vladimir Putin and a pomp-filled visit that Kyiv has made clear it opposes after Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow shortly before he touched down read more Russian armoured infantry carriers, including fighting vehicles BMP-1AM Basurmanin, drive along a road on the day of a rehearsal for a military parade, which marks the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia, on Wednesday. Reuters Chinese President Xi Jinping flew into Moscow on Wednesday for talks with President Vladimir Putin and a pomp-filled visit that Kyiv has made clear it opposes after Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow shortly before he touched down. Xi, whose country buys more Russian oil and gas than any other, and which has thrown Moscow an economic lifeline that has helped it navigate Western sanctions imposed over its war in Ukraine, landed at Moscow's Vnukovo-2 airport soon after Russian authorities said they had brought down another Ukrainian drone outside the capital. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD It was the third day Ukraine has targeted Moscow with drones and one of Moscow's main airports was forced to temporarily suspend its activities less than three hours before Xi's arrival. When asked during a news briefing about air attacks by both sides on each others' capitals, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry did not comment on Xi's trip, saying only that the 'top priority' was to avoid an escalation in tensions. The Kremlin said the attempted Ukrainian attacks on Moscow showed Kyiv's tendency to commit 'acts of terrorism' and that Russia's intelligence services and military were doing everything necessary to ensure the security of upcoming World War Two commemorations which Xi is due to attend. Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday that Russia had launched its own air attack on Kyiv overnight, killing a mother and her son. Russia says it only targets military objects. Xi is the most powerful world leader expected at a military parade on Moscow's Red Square on Friday to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Soviet Union and its allies over Nazi Germany. His visit hands President Vladimir Putin an important diplomatic boost at a time when the Russian leader is keen to show his country is not isolated on the world stage. The Kremlin has touted Xi's presence, along with that of 28 other world leaders, as a sign of Russia's growing global authority. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD But Ukraine's Foreign Ministry - in comments that seemed directed at China whose troops are due to march on Red Square - on Tuesday urged countries not to send their militaries to participate in the May 9 parade, saying such participation would go against some countries' declared neutrality in the war. Drones targeted Moscow Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that Russian air defence units had destroyed at least 14 Ukrainian drones headed for the Russian capital overnight. He later said at least two more had been brought down during the day. Xi has called for talks to end the war in Ukraine and has accused the U.S. of stoking the war with weapons supplies to Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has in the past urged him to try to persuade Putin to end the war. Xi is due to hold talks with the Russian leader on Thursday and to join other world leaders for the parade on Friday. His visit comes as US President Donald Trump is trying to push Moscow and Kyiv to find a way to end the war in Ukraine, with both sides blaming each other for a lack of progress. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Locked in a tariff war with the United States, Xi is expected to sign numerous agreements to deepen an already tight strategic partnership with Moscow, which has consistently seen China crowned Russia's biggest trading partner. Despite recent efforts under Trump to reset U.S.-Russia ties, Putin is expected to present a united front with Xi against Washington, whose dominance and 'exceptionalism' both countries have questioned, arguing for a more multipolar world. Post-war international order In a signed article published by Russian media on Wednesday, Xi wrote that China and Russia must 'firmly maintain the post-war international order.' 'The two sides should jointly resist any attempt to disrupt and undermine China-Russia friendship and mutual trust,' read the text of the article, Chinese state media reported. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova called the visit 'one of the central events in Russian-Chinese relations this year.' 'The World War Two focus is about the post-war international order and now the U.S. is dismantling or undermining it. So China and Russia will frame themselves as the defenders of the international order and the UN system, and oppose U.S. unilateralism and hegemony,' said Yun Sun, a China politics analyst at the Stimson Center in Washington. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In their talks, Putin and Xi will discuss the 'most sensitive' issues, including energy cooperation and the proposed but yet to be built Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline to China, Yuri Ushakov, a top Kremlin aide, said.
Straits Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Putin and Xi to mark WW2 victory amid war in Ukraine
Russian armoured infantry carriers, including fighting vehicles BMP-1AM Basurmanin, drive along a road on the day of a rehearsal for a military parade, which marks the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia, May 7, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov MOSCOW - Russia marks on Friday the 80th anniversary of the Soviet and allied victory over Nazi Germany, though there are fears that Ukraine may seek to disrupt the most hallowed celebration in the Russian calendar. Here is some information on who is expected to attend the celebrations, security arrangements and other details. WHO IS GOING? Twenty-nine leaders, including China's President Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, are expected to attend, the Kremlin said. "Despite the hostile attitude towards Russia from a number of Western countries, we are very successfully holding a very large-scale event," said Yuri Ushakov, the Kremlin's top foreign policy adviser. The Kremlin's list of expected attendees includes the leaders of the former Soviet republics of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Also expected are the leaders of Bosnia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, China, Congo, Cuba, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea–Bissau, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar, Palestinian Territories, Serbia, Slovakia, Venezuela, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. The leaders of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, two rebel regions considered by most of the world to be part of Georgia, are also expected. Western leaders from key allied victors in World War Two such as British Prime Keir Starmer will not attend, though some U.S. veterans will join the parade. Russian state broadcaster 'Zvezda' said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio might attend but the Kremlin said it had no information on his plans. Ukraine has invited senior EU leaders and officials to Kyiv. WHAT HAPPENS AT THE CELEBRATION? At the parade on Red Square, Russian soldiers goose-step to World War Two marching songs, roar to their commanders and drive military hardware such as intercontinental ballistic missiles and tanks past Lenin's Mausoleum. Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech, usually surrounded by veterans. Russia's defence minister inspects the thousands of troops who march past, while fighter jets, trailing smoke in the white, blue and red of the Russian tricolour, roar overhead. WILL IT BE SAFE? After three days of major Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow, there are fears that the parade could be disrupted, though the Kremlin has said the military is doing everything it can to ensure maximum security. Russia has developed myriad electronic "umbrellas" over Moscow and key installations, with additional advanced internal layers over strategic buildings, and a complex web of air defences to shoot down drones before they reach the Kremlin in the heart of the capital. The Kremlin brands Ukraine's attacks as acts of terrorism. Ukraine says it is simply fighting back after three years of deadly Russian attacks. Security is extremely tight in Moscow. The Kremlin said there would be disruption to mobile phone signals while even some sports clubs in the centre have cut back opening hours and warned clients that there will be searches. Putin has proposed a 72-hour ceasefire that will run on May 8, May 9 and May 10. The Kremlin has said it will abide by the ceasefire but will respond if Ukraine attacks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has called the proposed ceasefire pointless, and instead suggested an unconditional ceasefire over at least 30 days in line with a U.S. proposal launched in March. HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR RUSSIA - AND CHINA? The Soviet Union lost 27 million people in World War Two, including many millions in Ukraine, but pushed Nazi forces back to Berlin, where Adolf Hitler committed suicide and the red Soviet Victory Banner was raised over the Reichstag in May 1945. For many Russians - and for many other peoples of the former Soviet Union - May 9 is the most sacred date in the calendar, and Putin, bristling at what he says are attempts by the West to belittle the Soviet victory, has sought to use memories of World War Two to unite Russian society. Chinese Communist Party historians say China's casualties in the 1937-1945 Second Sino-Japanese War were 35 million. The Japanese occupation caused the displacement of as many as 100 million Chinese people and significant economic hardship, as well as the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, during which an estimated 100,000 to 300,000 victims were killed. WHY IS IT ON MAY 9? Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender came into force at 11:01 p.m. on May 8, 1945, marked as "Victory in Europe Day" by Britain, the United States and France. In Moscow it was already May 9, which became the Soviet Union's "Victory Day" in what Russians call the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45. HAS IT ALWAYS BEEN THIS WAY IN RUSSIA? After victory, Soviet leader Josef Stalin decreed a holiday, and the first victory parade on Red Square, featuring captured German insignia, was held on June 24, 1945. May 9 was a normal working day from 1947 until 1965, when then-Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev ordered a 20th anniversary parade on Red Square, featuring veterans and historical weaponry. Others were held in 1985, 1990 and 1995. The occasion for showing off modern Soviet military hardware was parades held on Red Square on Nov. 7 each year before the assembled Communist Party Politburo to mark the anniversary of Vladimir Lenin's Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. Since 2008, Victory Day has become an occasion not only to honour the sacrifices of a previous generation, which are seared into older Russians' folk memory, but also to burnish an image of post-Communist Russia restored to its former greatness. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
