Beijing to defend world security based on Putin-Xi consensus - TASS

Beijing will resolutely defend global security based on a mutual understanding reached by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Friday.

"We continue our efforts on the basis of the consensus reached by the leaders of China and Russia, <...> and we will actively contribute to the permanent maintenance of overall regional and global security," he told a news briefing, responding to a question from TASS about the prospects of Russian-Chinese cooperation along with other CSTO countries.

According to the Chinese diplomat, some countries seeking to establish their hegemony in the world "attempt to establish new military organizations which lead to the escalation of tension in the region." "Beijing and Moscow are strongly against such actions," Wang Wenbin pointed out.

On December 15, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping held a virtual summit. As Russian Presidential Aide for International Affairs Yury Ushakov told journalists, the conversation lasted close to an hour and a half. According to him, the leaders focused on all top priority issues ranging from security guarantees for Moscow in Europe to the creation of new alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. During the virtual summit, the Chinese leader said that Beijing intends to continue flexible and multifaceted cooperation with Moscow and other CSTO countries to maintain security and stability in the region.

On Thursday, CSTO Press Secretary Vladimir Zainetdinov told TASS that the establishment of dialogue and cooperation with China in order to safeguard security and stability in the region is on the agenda. He added that the contacts should be based on the universally acknowledged principles of international law, in line with the objectives and principles of the UN Charter and the CSTO Charter.