The presidents of China, Xi Jinping, and Russia, Vladimir Putin, praised the bilateral relationship during a meeting in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, which hosts a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. The bloc seeks to make a counterpoint to the European Union and President Donald Trump. Putin stated during the meeting that the strategic cooperation between the two countries constitutes a model for relations between states.
The summit also brings together other leaders, including the president of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian, the president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and the prime ministers of India, Narendra Modi, and Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, among other participants.
With its troops involved in the war in Ukraine, Russia has strengthened ties with China, which is the main buyer of Russian oil. The Russian invasion that began in 2022 caused strong international isolation of Moscow, and Beijing has never condemned the action.
Xi Jinping stated that China and Russia promote global reforms and declared that the two countries represent a model of international cooperation. The leaders took advantage of the summit to reinforce the strategic partnership, which has been deepening since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine.
