Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a surprise trip to Beijing on Wednesday.
The two leaders reportedly held talks on bilateral relations and the conflict in Ukraine.
Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, posted on his Telegram channel a video of him meeting with Xi, smiling for photos, and meeting with Chinese and Russian officials.
Medvedev said he and Xi discussed the two countries’ strategic partnership “without limits” as well as Ukraine. He did not provide other details.
“We discussed cooperation between the two ruling parties of China and Russia… bilateral cooperation within the framework of our strategic partnership, including on economics and industrial production. We also discussed international issues – including, of course, the conflict in Ukraine,” he said. Medvedev. .
“The talks were useful,” he added.
Russia has accelerated its turn toward Beijing after it was hit by a series of Western sanctions meant to punish it for what Moscow calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine in February.
Russia is seeking to forge closer economic, political and security ties with China to offset the loss of comparable ties with the West, and sees Xi as a potential ally in the anti-Western coalition.
