During their last meeting in February, Xi Jinping inaugurated the Winter Olympics in Beijing, hoping for a year in which his power will be strengthened by the extension of his presidency, as Vladimir Putin prepared to order his troops into Ukraine to achieve – what much of the world believed – quick and decisive victory. They used the opportunity to announce their “no-holds-barred” partnership, writes Thursday. in the opinion of the article, every dayThe Telegraph, quoted by Rador.

A few months later, the world doesn’t seem so kind to these two autocrats. Xi just made his first foreign visit in two years to attend a conference of Asian countries in Uzbekistan, having so far refused to travel due to the pandemic. China is not the only one in the world to adhere to the “zero covid” strategy, due to which large cities continue to be in quarantine, which has significant consequences for the country’s economy and the morale of the population.

Whether Xi still wants a “borderless” relationship with his Kremlin counterpart, given what Russian forces have done in Ukraine, will depend on the circumstances. The two leaders met during a conference in Uzbekistan, with Putin in a position badly affected by the fiasco in Ukraine, which has seen his authority questioned even in his own country. In addition, Xi apparently noted the West’s only response to the invasion of Ukraine is if it has similar plans for Taiwan.

America is about to announce new military aid to Ukraine, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has guaranteed the EU’s determination to get rid of dependence on Russian energy carriers. In just eight months, geopolitical tectonic plates have shifted, and the consequences will be felt for years to come.

• Read also: Putin during the first meeting with Xi after the start of the war: “We greatly appreciate the balanced position of our Chinese friends regarding the crisis in Ukraine”

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