Putin says China is Russia's ally, backs its stance on Taiwan

Summary

Russian President Vladimir Putin reinforced Russia’s support for China, backing Beijing’s claims over Taiwan and downplaying concerns about Sino-Russian cooperation.

At the Valdai forum, Putin stated that Russia views China as an ally with a “reasonable” policy on Taiwan, accusing Taiwan of provoking a Ukraine-style crisis in Asia.

He highlighted the strong trade and security ties between Russia and China, asserting that joint military exercises between the two nations are defensive and comparable to U.S.-Japan drills, and pose no threat to other countries.