MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu held talks in Moscow on Wednesday with a senior Chinese military official and said they would discuss steps to deepen cooperation, Interfax news agency reported.
“We, unlike some aggressive Western countries, are not creating a military bloc. Relations between Russia and China are an example of strategic interaction based on trust and respect,” it quoted Shoigu as saying at the meeting with General Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission.
It was the second time the two men had met in the space of 10 days, following talks on the sidelines of a forum that Shoigu attended in Beijing on Oct. 30.
Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping proclaimed a “no limits” partnership less than three weeks before Russia sent its troops into Ukraine last year, and China has refrained from criticising Moscow’s actions there. The United States has warned Beijing against supplying Russia with weapons.
(Writing by Mark Trevelyan; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
