Chinese presidents Xi Jinping and Russian Vladimir Putin meet in Samarkand , Uzbekistan, on the sidelines of the XXII summit of leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (Sco).
The Chinese state network CCTV confirms the face to face between the two leaders , the first since Russia's invasion of Ukraine , which began on February 24.
The summit is a dress rehearsal of the leaders' promise of partnership and "limitless" friendship, cemented by their common hatred of the West.
Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov assured that the talks will be "of particular importance" , focusing on the conflict in Ukraine, the situation in Taiwan, other "regional and international issues" and growing bilateral economic ties.
So far, Beijing has consistently increased its imports at a discount of Russian gas and oil , avoiding the links of secondary sanctions by the West.
The Taiwan dossier is the most sensitive for China : visits to Taipei and demonstrations of solidarity by the US and the EU are increasing, while Washington is evaluating the "impact of measures" to strengthen the security of the island and discourage the ambitions of Beijing, which sees Taipei as an "inalienable" part of its territory to be reunified even by force.
Founded in 2001 by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to fight terrorism and separatism, the SCO has seen the full entry of India and Pakistan since 2017, while many other countries are on the waiting list or are to join, like Iran. The group represents over 40% of the world population and 24% of global GDP.
(Unioneonline / D)