Even while Beijing stated last year that it had a "no-limits" friendship with Russia, China has declined to denounce Moscow's actions and has attempted to portray itself as impartial in the dispute. China has stated that all nations' sovereignty and territorial integrity should be respected, denounced Western economic measures, and charged NATO and the US with inciting Russia to use force.
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said that Beijing was worried about the year-old conflict spiraling out of control and urged negotiations with Moscow on a political settlement to his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba on Thursday. China "has always maintained an objective and fair attitude on the Ukraine problem, has committed itself to furthering negotiations and called on the international community to foster favorable conditions for peace talks," Qin added. Later on, according to a tweet from Kuleba, he and Qin "discussed the relevance of the idea of territorial integrity."
Xi "will have an in-depth exchange of views with President Putin on bilateral relations and major international and regional issues of common concern, promote strategic cooperation and practical cooperation between the two countries, and inject new impetus into the development of bilateral relations," according to Wang Wenbin, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a daily briefing on Friday.
According to the Kremlin, Xi and Putin will discuss and exchange ideas on "problems of further development of comprehensive partnership and strategic engagement between Russia and China" in the context of "deepening Russian-Chinese collaboration in the international arena."
