Chinese President Xi Jinping praised Russian President Vladimir Putin's leadership and downplayed the Wagner group's recent rebellion as simply Moscow's "internal affairs."
Xi also called for regional stability but argued that such a situation would only be possible after a short mutiny challenged the Russian strongman's rule.
Xi Jinping Shows Support of Russia
Throughout Saturday, the mercenary Wagner Group seized control of the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and marched toward Moscow. The soldiers demanded military leadership reforms from President Putin. Meanwhile, Western governments issued concerned statements that assured they were monitoring the fast-evolving situation in Russia.
Beijing sat quietly throughout the ordeal and only spoke out after the Russian strongman reached a deal late Saturday with Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin to end the military rebellion. As per Politico, China's Foreign Ministry said that the matter was a part of Russia's domestic affairs.
The ministry added that China fully supports Russia in safeguarding national stability and delivering regional development and prosperity. On Sunday, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu hosted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko.
The former said that under the strategic guidance of the Chinese president and the Russian strongman, the Chinese-Russian political trust had deepened even further. However, Beijing revealed that it wanted Moscow to keep China informed as quickly as possible about various political matters.
On the other hand, Russia's Foreign Ministry said that Rudenko's trip to China was a follow-up to Xi's trip to Russia that was made in March. That particular visit aimed to entrench and expand bilateral ties between the two countries.
Furthermore, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Rudenko exchanged views with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang regarding Sino-Russian relations and various international and regional issues that were of common concern between the two nations, according to Reuters.
Failed Wagner Rebellion
It was not immediately made clear when Rudenko arrived in Beijing or whether or not his trip was made in response to the Wagner group rebellion over the weekend. The mutiny was thwarted by a deal allowing Prigozhin and his troops to avoid criminal charges in exchange for the group pulling its troops back to base and toward Belarus.
On the other hand, Prigozhin said that his troops' rebellion march on Moscow was made to remove corrupt and incompetent commanders. He blamed such officials for botching the war in Ukraine.
On Saturday, the Chinese state-controlled newspaper Global Times said that hyping up the rebellion would only create an "illusion" that Russia has many internal contradictions and thoughts that the "building is collapsing."
China and Russia, while not being formal allies, have maintained relatively close ties throughout the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine. However, the United States and other Western countries have called on Beijing to condemn the war and stop supplying Russia with arms that it could use to support its war.
Following a phone call with United States President Joe Biden, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that they discussed the course of hostilities and the processes taking place in Russia. He called on the public to put global pressure on Moscow until international order is restored, said The Guardian.
