Bill Birtles, ABC News Online: Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have a 'bromance', but do China and Russia really trust each other?
Pancakes, vodka, ice hockey and friendship medals.
If ever two leaders wanted the world to see their 'bromance', it's Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping.
This week, in the far-flung east of Russia's vast territorial empire, the two men met again, reaffirming their friendship and presiding over joint war games involving no less than 300,000 soldiers.
The biggest Russian drills since the Soviet Union are not just a projection of Mr Putin's military might, but also a unified message to the West.
While sparsely-populated Mongolia is also taking part, it's the presence of Chinese warships and aircraft attracting the most attention.
Read more ....
WNU Editor: Both leaders have already met three times in the past few months .... and will meet again at the APEC Summit in November. And in the case of Russian President Putin, he has made it clear that he trusts China .... Putin says Russia's defense ties with China based on trust (Reuters). As for Chinese President Xi's point of view. He has been letting the Chinese media speak for him .... and they are saying the opposite (more or less) .... China-Russia ties: The issue of trust (CGTN). As to what is my take. The Kremlin may want to have closer ties with China, but Russian public sentiment is different. Russian businesses view China as a competitor in the Far East, and are loathed to enter into business partnerships with Chinese businesses. This IMHO is a Russian sentiment that is not going to change anytime soon.
Update: This is what most Russian pundits are saying .... Russia Is Moving Deeper Into China’s Embrace (Op-ed)(Moscow Times). An acceptance that Russia and China are coming closer together. But there is no enthusiasm for it.
1 comment:
Siberia is full of everything and China need it, one way or an other one (As in South China Sea, they can claim that "ancestors" was already there). An association of China and Russia is just an opportunist one, but do they have the same view of the future? I doubt.
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