President Putin’s China Visit: Game Changer in Global Politics and Economy I
Dr. Syed Mehboob
Economic and Political Analyst
http//: www.thenewslark.com
America as the major supporter of Israeli genocide in Palestine and despite world’s great majority of 143 countries supported separate Palestinian state, billions of people came out on roads, more than 40 universities students recorded protests in USA, and OIC, UNGA, UNSC, UN Human Rights Council every global platform adopted several resolutions for cease fire and International Court of Justice has given rulings but both Israel and USA become deaf and dumb and getting a notorious name and fame in history. In this perspective, the world desperately needs a balance of power and multi multi-polar world to challenge the US and Western countries' hegemony. There is a major shift of power toward the east as Russia and China joined hands to block and counter the hegemony of the USA and its allies and agreed to cooperate in multidimensional sectors during the highly important, significant, and strategic visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to China.
Vladimir Putin visited China from May 16 to 17, 2024, making his second visit to China in less than a year and his first foreign visit since the beginning of his new term in March 2024. This visit commemorated the 75th anniversary of the Soviet Union's recognition of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. Last year in March 2023, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Moscow on his first state visit after commencing his third term. This recent meeting was the 43rd one between the two leaders. The close relationship is called “ NO LIMIT FRIENDSHIP AND PARTNERSHIP” by President Putin In bilateral relationships, 2024 and 2025 have been designated as Chinese,, Russian years of culture. This year Russia will chair the 16th BRICS Summit, and China will take over the Chairmanship of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Recently Biden-Harris administration imposed new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, advanced batteries, solar cells, steel, aluminum, and medical equipment, alongside heavy sanctions on Russia.
According to Chinese customs data, bilateral trade between China and Russia reached US$240and billion last year, a 26% increase from the previous year. China exported various goods to Russia, including cars, industrial machinery, smartphones, while importing billions of dollars’ worth of Russian energy. China’s exports to Russia have tripled since 2015, from US$34.8 billion to US$76.3 billion in 2022 and to US$111.1 billion in 2023. Economic ties between Russia and China have been strengthening since 2014. In 2023, China supplied 60% of Russia’s import of dual-use high technology, including US$3.9 billion in telecommunication equipment( primarily smartphones) , US$2.3 billion in computers, US$2 billion in microprocessors, and US$1.7 billion in laboratory equipment. In return, Beijing gains access to natural resources and secures inland trade routes, making it less vulnerable to US pressure than Indo-Pacific sea lanes. It is worth mentioning that more than 90% of trade settlements between the two countries are conducted in their national currencies, totaling about 2,000 billion rubles and 1,600 billion Yuan. China has been Russia’s key partner for last 13 years and in 2023, Russia ranked 4th among China’s major trade partners. In their joint statement, they declared “Deepening China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era”. Both countries agreed on ten points covering bilateral economic relations, investments, finance, global governance, and the conflict in Ukraine.
Russia and China have been challenging Western dominance in global politics since the early 1990s, and global governance and security systems have been mainly shaped by the United States of America's influence. However, China is rising, and Russia’s insurgency rejected this Western-centric and unipolar world. They aim to create their network to counter US hegemony. In this context, the deepening of the Russia-China relationship has significant implications for the turbulent global environment. firstly, a closer military alliance between China and Russia and their strengthening ties will influence regional realignment in alliance politics. Europe is already split. Western Europe is more inclined towards the United States of America and its so-called International Order, while Eastern Europe is more inclined towards China and Russia. Decoupling the Industrial supply chain from the West could shift economic activities to regions such as Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, and the global south, inflicting the existing global economic and financial system.
Russian Economy
Russia is world’s 11th largest economy by nominal GDP, 6th largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) according to IMF while 5th largest according to World Bank.
Population : 147.19 million
GDP Nominal 2023 : US$ 2,000 billion
GDP PPP 2023 : US$ 5,200 billion
GDP Rank
Nominal 2023 : 11th
PPP 2023 : 5th
Growth Rate
Year %
2022 1.2
2023 3.6
2024 3.2
GDP per Capita
Nominal 2023 : US$ 13,648
PPP 2023 : US$ 35,401
GDP per Capita Rank
Nominal 2023 : 72nd
PPP 2023 : 60th
GDP by Sector
Sector % GDP
Agriculture 5.6
Industry 26.6
Services 67.8
Export : US$ 500 billion
Export Goods: Crude petroleum, refined petroleum, natural gas, wheat, iron
Export Partners
Country % of total export
China 21.1
India 8.3
Germany 5.7
Turkiye 5.2
Italy 5.2
Netherland 3.6
Imports : US$ 300 billion
Import partners
Country % of Total import
China 41
Germany 7.9
Turkiye 4.7
Kazakhstan 4.5
Russia’s vast geography is an important determinant of its economic activity, with the country holding a large share of the world’s natural resource. It has been widely described as an energy superpower, as it has the world’s largest natural gas reserves, 2nd largest coal reserves, 8th largest oil reserves, and the largest oil shale reserves in Europe. It is the world’s leading natural gas exporter. 2nd largest natural gas producer, 2nd largest oil exporter, third largest coal exporter. Russia’s foreign reserves are the 4th largest. It has a labour force of 70 million people, which is the world’s 7th largest.
(To be continued)