(Image via cnn.com) 

Photography Manager: Brendan Flaherty

Email: bflaherty1@umassd.edu

After a long period of time apart, two of the world’s most prominent leaders met once again to discuss the current status of the world.

This occasion would be their first meeting since the beginning of Russia’s war with Ukraine. 

The meetings started on Monday, March 20th, and ended on March 22nd. The talks focused on the various dilemmas surrounding the two countries, one being the Ukraine war.

The meeting was disguised as a friendly trip meant to arrange help in ending the Ukraine War and assure the Russian-Chinese friendship. 

China has provided some solutions to what they call “the Ukraine crisis.”

China has made itself out to be the peacekeeper of the situation and has proposed a 12-point peace plan that would call for a de-escalation of fighting. The nation’s plan would lead to an eventual “ceasefire and peace talks.” 

Zelenskyy, the President of Ukraine, sees China’s proposal as just another chance for Russia to regroup and attack again.

As for Russia, however, Putin was persuaded to agree to the plan believing that it might be a road to a peaceful resolution. The only problem with the plan is that it would only halt the fighting and not end it. 

Putin bashed western nations, saying they don’t see “such readiness from their side,” believing that the west wants the war to continue.

China did nothing to contradict the views of Putin and his war, refusing to acknowledge the damages his war caused. China also did not recognize the “arrest warrant issued for Putin by the International Criminal Court,” according to ABC News.

Instead, China has decided to bash Washington over its continued support for Ukraine by sending aid to them. 

They say that US support is only worsening the conflict and adding fuel to the flame. China pleaded with the US to stop sending weapons to the Ukrainians in order to stop the fighting. 

Though China’s intentions seem anything but reasonable, if the US stopped sending support to Ukraine, it would mean a win for China’s ally, Russia.

China has continued to insist that they have been neutral in the Ukraine war and have not exploited or sided with either country. 

The nation has claimed in the past to have plans to try and end the conflict, but these plans could not appease both sides.

For a country that claims not to have taken a side in the matter, they seem to be very helpful to Russia during this time of war. China has, after all, been one of Russia’s biggest supporters for the longest time.

The Russian-Chinese relationship has existed since the mid-1900s, starting around 1949 when the soviets helped the communists win the Chinese civil war, according to the Wikipedia page regarding the beginning of their friendship.

When the war in Ukraine started, most countries cut off trade with Russia and made sanctions against them. Meanwhile, China continued to trade with Russia, racking up around “190bn in 2022,” according to BBC.

This meeting was just to reassure China of its strong ties with Russia. It would not be too surprising if China were to get into a war with Taiwan, then they would look to Russia for aid.

China has noted that their relationship is “not the kind of military-political alliance during the Cold War,” as mentioned in an article by MSN.

In fact, during the talks, Xi, the leader of China, got Putin to comment on the state of Taiwan, affirming “Taiwan as an inalienable part of Chinese territory.”

During the meeting, the two leaders would be seen calling each other “dear friend” and having nothing but positive views towards the other and their actions.

Even after all the talks, China has remained stagnant in its view on the Ukraine war, saying that they still wish to create peace between the two countries. 

If peace will ever be reached is another question.

The Russian-Chinese relationship could prove dangerous as they have become very good partners and have plans for the future. 

When Xi left Moscow on his last day there, he said to Putin, “now there are changes that haven’t happened in 100 years. When we are together, we drive these changes.”

This statement left the world to interpret what exactly the leader of China meant by that statement. 

However, none of these interpretations spell good intentions from the leaders.

The two countries will likely continue to trade and work with each other in their future endeavors, whatever their plans might be.