Amid crisis in Ukraine, Putin in Beijing praises China ties

President Xi has not left China since January 2020, when the country was grappling with its initial Covid-19 outbreak

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) pose for a picture during their meeting in Beijing, China, February 4, 2022. EPA / Sputnik

China's President Xi Jinping held his first face-to-face talks with a world leader in nearly two years on Friday, meeting Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Mr Putin hailed “unprecedented” ties between the neighbours, as tensions grow with the West.

Mr Xi has not left China since January 2020, when the country was grappling with its initial Covid-19 outbreak and locked down the central city of Wuhan where the virus was first detected.

He is now embarking on a flurry of diplomatic activity, as more than 20 world leaders flew in for the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Friday.

China hopes the Olympics will be a soft power triumph and a shift away from a build-up blighted by a diplomatic boycott and Covid fears.

The two leaders met in Beijing as their countries seek to deepen relations in the face of increasing criticism from the West.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, fourth right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, fourth left, attend talks in Beijing, China, February 4, 2022. Kremlin Pool Photo via AP

Russia's ties with China are “developing progressively along the path of friendship and strategic partnership, they are of a truly unprecedented nature”, Mr Putin said in televised remarks at the start of the meeting.

The countries are “an example of a dignified relationship”, he said.

Mr Putin said that before the meeting Moscow had prepared a new contract for the supply of 10 billion cubic metres of natural gas to China from Russia's Far East.

The leaders will attend the Olympic opening ceremony later in the evening.

While Russian officials are banned from attending international sporting competitions over a doping scandal, they may attend if invited by the head of state of the host country.

Spiralling tensions with the West have bolstered ties between the world's largest nation and its most populous, and Mr Putin was the first foreign leader to confirm his presence at the Olympics.

“I have known President Xi Jinping for a long time,” state-owned Chinese broadcaster CCTV quoted Mr Putin as saying on Friday.

“As good friends and politicians who share many common views on solving world problems, we have always maintained close communication.”

China's state-run Xinhua news agency carried an article from Mr Putin on Thursday in which the Russian president painted a portrait of two neighbours with increasingly shared global goals.

He also hit out at the US-led western diplomatic boycott of the Olympics in protest at China's human rights record.

“Sadly, attempts by a number of countries to politicise sports for their selfish interests have recently intensified,” Mr Putin said, calling such moves “fundamentally wrong".

Russian and Belarus troops held joint combat training at firing ranges in Belarus as tensions remain high under the looming threat of war with Ukraine. AP Photo

A soldier drives an armoured vehicle at Brestsky firing range, Belarus. AP Photo

A Ukrainian serviceman carries out checks not far from the pro-Russian militant-controlled city of Donetsk, Ukraine. EPA

A Russian military vehicle drives off a railway platform after arriving in Belarus. AP Photo

A soldier takes aim during a Russian and Belarusian military drill at Brestsky firing range. AP Photo

A Ukrainian serviceman repairs a shelter near Donetsk, Ukraine. EPA

Aircraft are lined up on 'USS Harry S Truman' in the Adriatic Sea. The Truman strike group is operating under Nato command and control along with several other Nato allies for co-ordinated maritime manoeuvres, anti-submarine warfare training and long-range training. Reuters

Russian soldiers attend the Yurginsky training ground in the Kemerovo region, Russia. AP Photo

A Ukrainian serviceman lays flowers where one of his friends was killed in 2017 near Avdiivka. Anatolii Stepanov / AFP

A Ukrainian serviceman stands guard in a dugout on the frontline with the Russia-backed separatists near Avdiivka. AFP

This satellite image shows troops gathered at a training ground in Pogonovo, Russia. AP Photo

For its part, China has become more vocal in backing Russia in its dispute with Nato powers over Ukraine.

Last week, China's foreign minister Wang Yi called Russia's security concerns “legitimate”, saying they should be “taken seriously and addressed".

Moscow is looking for support after its deployment of 100,000 troops near its border with Ukraine prompted western nations to warn of an invasion and threaten “severe consequences” in response to any Russian attack.

When the communists took power in China in 1949, they were supported by the Soviet Union. However, the two socialist powers later fell out over ideological differences.

Relations got back on track as the Cold War ended in the 1990s, and they have pursued a strategic partnership in recent years that has seen them work closely on trade, military and geopolitical issues.

Those bonds have strengthened further during Mr Xi's presidency.

Among those also attending the Winter Olympics opening ceremony are Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Poland's President Andrzej Duda.

Performers create a flower display with LED lights during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the Beijing National Stadium on Friday, February 04, 2022. Getty

Performers during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. AFP

China's President Xi Jinping, centre, and his wife Peng Liyuan, right, greet other attendees during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. AFP

An overview of the National Stadium during the opening ceremony. AFP

Russia President Vladimir Putin arrives for the opening ceremony. Getty

Dancers perform during the opening ceremony on Friday. EPA

Performers create a flower display with LED lights during the opening ceremony. Getty

Dancers perform during the pre-show ahead of the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

View inside the stadium as performers dance during the opening ceremony. Getty

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan at the opening ceremony. Getty

Performer’s dance during the opening ceremony. Getty

Performers during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the National Stadium on Friday, February 4, 2022. AFP

Performers take part in the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. AFP

Firework display during the Opening Ceremony at the Beijing National Stadium. Getty

A projection display during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Getty

An overview of the stadium ahead of the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. AFP

A general view inside the stadium during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the National Stadium. Getty

Performers dance during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Getty

Hosts address the crowd during the pre-show ahead of the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics. AP Photo

BEIJING, CHINA - FEBRUARY 04: A general view inside the stadium as fireworks are set off during the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the Beijing National Stadium on February 04, 2022 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Richard Heathcote / Getty Images)

Inside the national stadium before the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Reuters

Inside the national stadium before the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. PA

A woman wearing a face mask holds a Chinese national flag before the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Reuters

Spectators arrive for the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Games at the National Stadium, also known as Bird's Nest, in Beijing China. EPA

Volunteers hold placards of Bing Dwen Dwen and Shuey Rhon Rhon, mascots of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, during a community event at an Olympics Live Site before the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, in Beijing, China. Reuters

A man waves a Chinese flag as people gather near the National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest, for the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, in Beijing, China. Reuters

Members of Team United States during the opening ceremony. Getty

Athletes of China march during the opening ceremony. EPA

Athletes of China arrive for the opening ceremony. EPA

Dancers perform around the large snowflake during the opening ceremony. Getty

Opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Getty

The Bird's Nest stadium during the opening ceremony. Reuters

Macron to meet Putin

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron will meet Mr Putin in Moscow on Monday and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kiev on Tuesday, to discuss the Ukraine situation, as western world leaders try to avoid conflict with Russia over Ukraine.

The French president has said that finding a negotiated path towards de-escalating tensions was a priority.

Mr Macron held phone calls with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders on Thursday to try to make progress on the status of Donbass, the separatist region in eastern Ukraine, as part of efforts to defuse tensions.