Xi returns to world stage with Putin to counter US global order

Bloomberg

In the almost 1,000 days since Xi Jinping last ventured abroad, China has found itself increasingly isolated within the US-led world order. He’s finally reemerging this week alongside Russia’s Vladimir Putin to showcase his vision for a viable alternative.
Xi and Putin this week are expected to hold their first in-person chat since Russia invaded Ukraine, showing that Beijing sees the relationship as crucial to countering the US. It will occur on the sidelines of a Chinese-founded security forum slated for Thursday and Friday in Uzbekistan that gathers countries ranging from India to Iran — a grouping that aims to accelerate the formation of a multipolar world.
Prior to that, Xi on Wednesday will stop in Kazakhstan, where he unveiled what would be become his signature Belt-and-Road trade-and-infrastructure plan nine years ago. That foreign-policy initiative has since become a focal point of the US and its allies in the Group of Seven, which in June announced plans to raise $600 billion in financing so lower-income countries have an alternative to Chinese cash.
Both stops will reinforce Xi’s vision of a world where China can expand its interests without fearing the threat of economic or military pressure from the US. The Chinese leader will expound on that agenda at a twice-a-decade party congress next month, during which he’s expected to secure a third term as leader of the world’s second-biggest economy.
“Xi Jinping is trying to reorient global affairs in a direction that de-centers Western institutions and promotes groupings and institutions that are more favorable to China’s interests and worldview,” said Trey McArver, co-founder of research firm Trivium China. Xi’s meeting with Putin, he added, “sends a very clear signal that China continues to tilt toward the side of Russia in that conflict.”
The stakes are rising for both Xi and Putin, who declared a “no limits” friendship just weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
In recent days, Putin has seen Ukraine push back Russian forces and retake large swathes of land, while Xi has been under pressure to adopt stronger measures to prevent Taiwan from boosting relations with the US and its allies.
China has so far avoided doing anything that would make it subject to US sanctions or help Russia win the war, even as Beijing provides Putin with diplomatic support and increases trade with its northern neighbor. China’s interest in helping Russia appears more geared toward rebutting US moves that could also one day be used against Beijing.
After a meeting on Monday with outgoing Russian Ambassador Andrey Denisov, top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi said the two countries should work to “promote the development of the international order in a more just and reasonable direction.”
“China has not stepped up to supply Russia with weapons or advanced electronics during the war,” said Iikka Korhonen, head of research at Bank of Finland Institute for Economies in Transition. “They are mindful of not violating these actions, at least not in an obvious way, so there are limits about what these so-called allies are prepared to do.”
Moscow has sought to trumpet China’s support for the war. Last week it released statements citing Li Zhanshu, China’s No. 3 official, telling Russian lawmakers that Beijing’s leaders “fully understand the necessity of all the measures taken by Russia aimed at protecting its key interests, we are providing our assistance.”