Sébastien Le Belzic (in Beijing), edited by Laura Laplaud 07:59, February 23, 2023
China's top diplomat is in Moscow, a symbol of Beijing's strong support for Vladimir Putin.
China, very attached to its relationship with Russia, promises to further strengthen strategic cooperation between the two countries.
Beijing wants at all costs to avoid a collapse of the Putin regime.
On the eve of the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, what role can China play in this conflict?
The Chinese foreign minister visited Moscow on Wednesday.
Objective of the visit: to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries and emerge from the conflict through a peace plan.
If the details of this plan are not yet known, the motivations are both economic and political.
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Beijing promises to strengthen cooperation with Moscow
The special envoy of the Chinese president met on Wednesday Vladimir Putin, the symbol of this unity and this unfailing friendship between the two countries as described by the Chinese government.
A friendship that Vladimir Putin needs, isolated on the international scene since the beginning of his war against Ukraine.
"Cooperation on the world stage between the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation - as we have repeatedly stressed - is very important for stabilizing the international situation," the Russian President said.
Beijing promises to further strengthen its cooperation with Moscow, which holds the Russian economy at arm's length.
Trade between the two countries has increased by more than 30% since the start of the war.
But Beijing is especially worried about seeing Russia bogged down in Ukraine causing the collapse of Putin's regime with the risk of destabilization of Russia with which it shares more than 4,000 kilometers of border.