Putin and Xi Jinping, face to face: "China is willing to collaborate with Russia as great powers to lead a changing world"

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Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, claims to be one of the oldest and most historic cities in Central Asia.

It was conquered by Alexander the Great and destroyed by the Mongols led by the warlord Genghis Khan.

Later, it became the capital of the mighty Timurid empire.

Central square of the old Silk Road that left China, ended up absorbed by the Soviet Union.

A crossroads of civilizations that this week

where the main attraction has been the hand in hand between

and

.

In their first face-to-face meeting since the attack by Russian forces on Ukraine began (they had two talks over the phone, one in late February and one in June),

, according to the Russian reading of the conversation,

- in a clear reference to the United States - and told his Chinese counterpart that he "understands China's concerns on the Ukrainian issue" and that he appreciated his "balanced position" on Ukraine.

Xi, for his part, has extended his hand by assuring that

to "set an example as great world powers and play a leading role in leading this rapidly changing world to a stable and positive development trajectory." ".

, which does not

, has reiterated that Xi and Putin are willing to "provide strong mutual support to each other on issues related to each other's core interests."

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Before the Chinese president's first words were revealed, the Kremlin went ahead making public a statement attributed to Putin: "The foreign policy tandem of Moscow and Beijing plays a key role in guaranteeing global and regional stability. We jointly defend the

based on international norms and on the central role of the UN".

The Russian leader has arrived in Samarkand in low hours after his

and the noise of sabers that has exploded inside his home.

Increasingly isolated from the West, Putin intended to give a boost to his Asian turn during the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a regional economic and security grouping.

Especially towards neighboring China, which he needs more than ever,

De him.

Something that he would not have achieved in view of the declarations that have been made public by the Chinese president, whose tacit support does not go beyond the line followed by Beijing during the seven months of war in Ukraine:

, but arms always open to strengthen a common front against the great rival they share in common, the United States.

The meeting between the leaders of Russia and China comes just days after China's top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, said the two countries intended to "lead the global order in a fairer and more reasonable direction."

On a recent visit to Russia, Li Zhanshu, head of China's top legislature and the Asian power's third-highest political figure, said

.

The group that represents 44% of the world's population and 30% of the world's GDP is concentrated in the summit of the SCO.

In addition to Xi and Putin, other important regional actors have passed through Samarkand, such as the leaders of India, Pakistan and Iran, a country that will become the ninth member of the group founded by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in 2001 But all eyes were on whether Xi would lean more towards Putin.

Since the war began, people in Beijing have repeated over and over again that they consider Russia's security concerns about NATO's expansion into Eastern Europe to be legitimate.

But they have also emphasized

, to which they have sent humanitarian aid.

They do not come out of that contradiction.

Facing the international gallery, Beijing defends a

imposed on Russia from rebounding.

Although the reality is that this position has nothing to do with the narrative launched by the

, which is

.

Privately, Chinese diplomats acknowledge that the war in Ukraine makes them uncomfortable, something that has not prevented them from using it to attack a system dominated by the United States that they consider to be bankrupt and taking advantage of the distraction to continue expanding their influence, in this moment in Central Asia, where it has traditionally quietly bid with Russia to be the predominant force in the region.

The last time the two leaders shook hands was on February 4, during the opening day of the Beijing Winter Olympics.

That meeting ended with the signing of what they called a "strategic coordination without limits": a joint declaration where they stated that the world was heading towards the "transformation of the global governance architecture and world order."

Xi then backed Putin in his complaints that NATO was expanding in Eastern Europe.

At that time, Russian troops were concentrated on the border with Ukraine.

The Games closed 20 days later.

Not even 24 hours passed before Putin announced that he recognized the

.

China, Russia and their goal of drawing a new world order.

That concept has been repeated a lot this year by US President Joe Biden.

Also, from Brussels,

.

"Beijing and Moscow want to redefine the world order,

," the European Union's high commissioner said during the Munich security conference.

The same line was followed by the

statement after the last summit in Madrid: "China wants to subvert the world order. Its deeply strategic alliance with the Russian Federation and its

in contrast to its values ​​and interests .

".

China has spent the whole year avoiding becoming, in the eyes of the West, an umbrella for Russia in the face of the rain of sanctions.

Some Chinese companies cut ties with Moscow and limited operations with sanctioned Russian banks.

But Beijing makes no secret of its willingness to take advantage of the weakness of its isolated neighbor, knowing that the Kremlin is the junior partner in an unequal relationship.

Moscow is much more dependent on Beijing, an economy 10 times its size, than vice versa.

," says Alexander Gabuev, an analyst at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington think tank.

From the Asian giant they have launched to

.

In the first eight months of 2022, China's trade with Russia increased by 31% year-on-year.

In August alone, China spent 60% on Russian products than a year ago.

And Gazprom, Russia's energy monopoly, has said it has an agreement with Chinese companies to start paying Beijing's growing gas supplies in yuan and rubles instead of dollars.

The figures do not lie: Moscow and Beijing have been strengthening their commercial, not military, relationship for months.

The Chinese army crossed into Russia in early September for

.

But, from the Chinese Government, they are concerned that international sanctions could rebound, they state that they have refused to send any military aid to their Russian partner to attack Ukraine.

Just before the meeting between Xi and Putin in Samarkand, the Kremlin announced that the Chinese and Russian navies were carrying

.

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