China, which continues to stand by Moscow while other countries have turned their backs on Russia following the attack on Ukraine, has congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his election landslide in a vote considered neither free nor fair.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday congratulated Putin on the phone, telling him that he trusts that Russia will be able to achieve even greater success in the development and construction of the country under Putin’s leadership, acccordig to state television.
Earlier, Lin Jian, the new spokesman for the Foreign Ministry said that China and Russia are “strategic partners in the new era.”
With 98% of the ballot papers counted, Putin received more than 87% of the votes according to the electoral commission – a record result that observers say was only achieved through repression, coercion and fraud.
Putin has now been in power in Russia for around a quarter of a century.
While Western countries are trying to isolate Moscow in light of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, Beijing, outwardly neutral but backing Russia, remains the Kremlin’s most important ally. Xi called Putin an “old friend” at a meeting last autumn.
Trade between Russia, which is affected by Western sanctions, and the world’s second-largest economy is also flourishing.
China’s car manufacturers, for example, export numerous vehicles to the neighbouring country, while Russian gas flows into Chinese households, for example.
