(21) China's Foreign Minister Wants You To Know: Russia is Beijing's Best Friend Forever

https://themoscowtimes.com/news/chinas-foreign-minister-wants-you-to-know-russia-is-our-best-friend-forever-57366

China's Foreign Minister Wants You To Know: Russia is Beijing's Best Friend Forever

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Mark Schiefelbein / AP

China's friendship with Russia has reached new heights, according to top Chinese officials. Apropos of nothing at all, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi declared on March 8 that relations with Russia had reached "a historic maximum."

"China-Russia relations are stronger than they have ever been," Yi was quoted as saying in the Shanghai Daily newspaper. He refuted claims that Beijing-Moscow ties were based on some "external factors," such as tensions with the United States, but shared mutual interests.

Yi said that several meetings between senior Russian and Chinese officials, including Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, were planned in 2017. These meetings will only deepen the two countries' level of bilateral engagement, he said.

The minister also stressed that power duo needed to engage and cooperate with the United States In January, Jinping announced that China wanted to adopt a new relationship model with the United States and a strategic partnership with Russia.