KABUL: Before his trip to China, Russian President Vladimir Putin had strongly criticized the Western sanctions imposed on his country.
He stated that Western sanctions and the costs of the Ukraine war have placed his country’s economy on the brink of recession.
Reuters reported this morning that Putin emphasized in an interview with the Chinese state news agency Xinhua, that Moscow and Beijing jointly oppose the “discriminatory” economic sanctions imposed by the West on global trade.
He praised the strengthening of economic relations between Russia and China, calling it the largest trade partnership, noting that trade between Moscow and Beijing is expected to reach $245 billion in 2024.
Putin also highlighted that transactions between Beijing and Moscow are conducted in “rubles and yuan” (the currencies of Russia and China).
The remarks come as Putin is set to travel on a four-day trip to China starting tomorrow (Sunday).