Russian and US steps to normalise ties bring optimism China s foreign minister says

MOSCOW - China and Russia are “friends forever, never enemies”, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in remarks published on April 1 during a visit to Moscow, in which he also welcomed signs of normalising ties between Washington and Moscow.

“The principle of ‘friends forever, never enemies’... serves as a solid legal basis for advancing strategic cooperation at a higher level,” Mr Wang told Russia’s RIA state news agency in an interview.

Mr Wang is on a three-day visit to Moscow for strategic cooperation talks, a trip overshadowed by uncertainty around talks to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine and US President Donald Trump’s criticism of the Russian and Ukrainian leaders.

China and Russia declared a “no limits” strategic partnership days before Russian President Vladimir Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has met Mr Putin more than 40 times in the past decade, and the two leaders have since agreed to deepen ties and cooperate on issues such as Taiwan, Ukraine and mutual rival the US.

The Kremlin said on March 31 that Mr Putin would receive Mr Wang, who will also hold talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

Mr Wang said current global conditions obliged big powers to act as stabilising factors, so it was encouraging that Russia and the US had moved to improve relations.

The Kremlin said on March 31 that Russia and the US were working on ideas for a possible peace settlement in Ukraine and on building bilateral ties. Since taking office in January, Mr Trump has shifted the US to a more conciliatory stance towards Russia.

“(This) is good for stabilising the balance of power between major powers and inspires optimism in a disappointing international situation,” RIA cited Mr Wang as saying.

Mr