Putin, Xi to usher 'new era' in ties during Moscow visit

Putin, Xi to usher 'new era' in ties during Moscow visit
by AFP Staff Writers
Moscow (AFP) March 17, 2023

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader President Xi Jinping will sign accords ushering in a "new era" of ties in Moscow next week, the Kremlin said Friday.

Xi will be in Russia from Monday to Wednesday, Beijing and Moscow announced, for talks with his strategic ally just over a year into Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.

Kremlin advisor Yuri Ushakov said Putin and Xi would sign a key declaration "on strengthening (the two countries') comprehensive partnership and strategic relations entering a new era."

China's foreign ministry called Xi's trip "a visit for peace" that aimed to "practice true multilateralism... improve global governance and make contributions to the development and progress of the world".

The two leaders would exchange views on relations between their countries, and major international and regional issues, ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters.

"The world has entered a new period of turmoil," he said.

"China will uphold its objective and fair position on the Ukrainian crisis and play a constructive role in promoting peace talks," he added.

In comments carried by Russian news agencies, Ushakov said the Kremlin "highly valued" Beijing's "restrained and considered position" on the conflict.

- Dialogue and respect -

Xi, 69, began a third five-year term as president this month in a break with longstanding precedent.

His visit to Russia comes just over a year after Putin, 70, sent troops to Ukraine, kicking off a conflict that has isolated Moscow on the international stage.

China, a major Russian ally, has sought to position itself as a neutral party, urging Moscow and Kyiv to resolve it through negotiations.

In a 12-point position paper on the conflict last month, China called for dialogue and respect for all countries' territorial sovereignty.

But Western leaders have repeatedly criticised Beijing for failing to condemn Russia's offensive, accusing it of providing Moscow with diplomatic cover for its assault.

The United States has accused China of mulling arms shipments to support Russia's campaign -- claims Beijing has strongly denied.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in February he was planning to meet Xi after Beijing called for talks. The Chinese foreign ministry did not confirm on Friday whether he planned to do so.

The two nations' foreign ministers held a telephone call on Thursday, the first since China's Qin Gang took office.

- China the peacemaker? -

Qin urged Kyiv and Moscow to restart peace talks "as soon as possible", adding that "China is concerned that the crisis could escalate and get out of control".

His Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba said the call included discussion of "the significance of the principle of territorial integrity", without giving details.

Formerly socialist allies with a tempestuous relationship, China and Russia have deepened economic, military and political cooperation recently as part of their "no limits" partnership.

Both sides have frequently emphasised the close relationship between Putin and Xi.

Xi last visited Russia in 2019, while Putin attended the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Beijing last year and the two leaders also met at a regional security gathering in Uzbekistan in September.

Xi also helped spur a China-mediated deal to restore ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia last week.

"Whether (China) is actually stepping up its efforts to play peacemaker in a meaningful way will depend on the substance of what it proposes during meetings with leaders from Ukraine and Russia," said Ja-Ian Chong, an associate professor at the National University of Singapore.

The announcement of Xi's visit came after Poland this week said Warsaw would deliver an initial batch of four MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, in what would be the first such shipment by a NATO member.

- Fighter jets -

Slovakia followed up Friday with an offer of 13 MiG-29 warplanes for Kyiv, which has urged allies to send fighter jets ahead of an expected uptick spring offensive.

"We're giving these MiGs to Ukraine so that it can protect civilians against the many bombs that fall on their houses and which are the reason why people are dying in Ukraine," said Prime Minister Eduard Heger.

He told reporters that Bratislava would also deliver a Kub air defence system to Ukraine.

The batch will include 10 operational jets and an additional three that have not been in use since 2008.

Slovak Defence Minister Jaroslav Nad said the transfer would take "a couple of weeks".

"Our steps are fully coordinated with Poland and Ukraine," Heger said, adding that his government "stands on the right side of history".

Ukraine had been primarily seeking modern US-made F-16s.

The Kremlin said the weapons would have no impact on the battlefield.

"All this equipment will be destroyed," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

US says Chinese call for Ukraine ceasefire would aid 'Russian conquest'
Washington (AFP) March 17, 2023 - The United States opposes Chinese calls for a ceasefire in Ukraine, saying this would simply consolidate "Russian conquest" and allow the Kremlin to prepare a new offensive, a White House spokesman said Friday.

"We don't support calls for a ceasefire right now," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters ahead of next week's visit to Moscow by Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

"We certainly don't support calls for a ceasefire that would be called for by the PRC in a meeting in Moscow that would simply benefit Russia," he said, using China's official acronym -- the People's Republic of China.

The United States, which is leading a Western coalition to arm Ukraine and support its defense against the more-than-year-long invasion by Russia, is concerned that making a ceasefire the priority would relieve pressure on Russian forces and give the Kremlin an opportunity to consolidate its grip on swaths of territory.

"A ceasefire now is... effectively the ratification of Russian conquest," Kirby said.

"Russia would be free then to use a ceasefire to only further entrench their positions in Ukraine, to rebuild, refit and refresh their forces so they can restart attacks on Ukraine at a time of their choosing."

"We do not believe this is a step toward a just and durable peace."

Kirby reiterated that President Joe Biden plans to talk by phone with Xi but said that arrangements have not even started.

"There is no call scheduled. While the president has made it clear he wants, he looks forward to another opportunity to speak with President Xi, we're not actively engaged in the logistics of setting that up right now," he said.

"To my knowledge, there's been no outreach to the Chinese to work on the logistics."

US officials are watching closely whether China will extend its diplomatic support for Russia during the war to military assistance, such as ammunition or weaponry.

Kirby said Beijing has not "taken it off the table, but we also haven't seen any indications, any confirmation, that they've made a decision to move in that direction or have actually provided" weapons.

NATO chief welcomes Turkey move to ratify Finland membership
Brussels (AFP) March 17, 2023 - NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Friday hailed Turkey's decision to push ahead with ratifying Finland's membership, and said Sweden should also be allowed to join "as soon as possible".

"The most important thing is that both Finland and Sweden become full members of NATO quickly, not whether they join at exactly the same time," Stoltenberg said.

The head of the Western military alliance said Helsinki's membership "will strengthen Finland's security, it will strengthen Sweden's security, and it will strengthen NATO's security".

He called on the Turkish parliament to vote on the ratification soon.

Turkey and Hungary are the only NATO members still to ratify the Finnish and Swedish applications, which must be accepted by all 30 existing members of the alliance.

Shortly after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had announced his decision, Hungary said that its parliament will vote on Finland's membership bid on March 27.

The Nordic neighbours dropped decades-long policies of military non-alignment and applied to join the western alliance last May in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

They initially hoped to join together after their their applications were accepted at a June NATO summit.

But Erdogan has accused the Nordic neighbours of breaking the terms of a deal under which Turkey agreed to approve the bids.

The Turkish leader voiced particular displeasure with Sweden -- a country with a larger Kurdish diaspora and a longer history of disputes with Ankara.

Erdogan's demands became more urgent as he neared a May election in which he will need a strong turnout from his nationalist supporters to extend his two-decade rule.

Stoltenberg has sought to mediate a compromise with Ankara, but so far there has not been any breakthrough on Stockholm's application.

The NATO leader insisted that Finland and Sweden's membership had already been bolstered by their push to join.

"It is inconceivable that NATO would not respond should either Finland or Sweden come under attack. Their security matters to NATO," he said.

Hungary sets March vote for Finland's NATO bid
Budapest (AFP) March 17, 2023 - Hungary will vote on Finland's application to join the NATO defence alliance on March 27, a Hungarian government spokesperson Zoltan Kovacs said Friday.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban's ruling Fidesz party "supports Finland's NATO accession," said Kovacs, citing the party's parliamentary group leader Mate Kocsis.

"The parliamentary vote will take place on March 27," Kovacs said in a Twitter message.

While Kocsis said in a Facebook message that "the parliamentary group will decide on the case of Sweden later."

Turkey and Hungary are the only NATO members still to ratify Sweden and Finland's bids, which must be accepted by all 30 existing members of the military organisation.

At the beginning of March, Hungarian lawmakers started debating the NATO bids of Finland and Sweden, but the parliament - dominated by Fidesz - had dragged its heels on setting a date for the vote.

Hungary "will not bow to pressure...regarding when and how parliament should approve legislation," said Kocsis.

A Hungarian parliamentary delegation that visited Stockholm and Helsinki last week said Swedish politicians need to stop spreading "lies" about Budapest and the rule of law.

Budapest has been at loggerheads with Brussels for months over blocked EU funds earmarked for Hungary as Brussels insists on anti-corruption reforms and rule-of-law guarantees.