AFP

Russian President Vladimir Putin attended large-scale military exercises on Tuesday in which China and several other countries considered friends of Russia will participate, as Moscow seeks to strengthen its partnerships in Asia in the face of Western sanctions. Russia has found itself increasingly isolated as tensions between Moscow and Western capitals have increased since it sent troops into pro-Western Ukraine on February 24. At a time when Washington and Brussels imposed unprecedented sanctions on Moscow, Putin sought to get closer to countries in Africa, South America and Asia, especially China. On Tuesday, Putin attended the "Vostok-2022" exercises, which are being held at training sites in the Russian Far East and in the sea off Russia's eastern coast, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told local news agencies. Peskov was quoted as saying that Putin is holding a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov at the Sergeevsky Military Field and could follow the final stage of military exercises later. The "Vostok-2022" maneuvers were launched on September 1 and are scheduled to continue until Wednesday. The participating countries include a number of countries neighboring Russia in addition to Syria, India and China. More than 50,000 soldiers and 5,000 units of military equipment, including 140 aircraft and 60 ships, will participate in the exercises, according to Moscow. Similar exercises were organized in 2018. Putin's visit to the Russian Far East will continue on Wednesday in the coastal city of Vladivostok, where he is expected to address the "Eastern Economic Forum". More than 5,000 people will participate in the four-day forum, which began on Monday, in the presence of a Chinese delegation, the largest delegation participating in the event, according to the Kremlin. In the preparatory forum session, Putin will be joined by Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Nation Li Ganshu, who is the third person in the hierarchy of power in the Chinese government. A bilateral meeting is also expected. Lee will be the highest-ranking Communist Party politician to go to Russia since Moscow's military intervention in Ukraine. - 'Boundless' relationship - "The Russian-Chinese comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation relations are developing gradually," the Kremlin said in a statement ahead of the meeting. He noted China's "balanced approach to the Ukrainian crisis" and Beijing's "understanding" of the reasons behind the Russian attack. Beijing and Moscow have converged in recent years and strengthened their cooperation within the framework of a relationship that the two countries described as "without borders", to play a role aimed at countering the global hegemony of the United States. Beijing refused to condemn the Russian intervention in Ukraine and provided diplomatic cover for it by denouncing Western sanctions and the West's move to supply Kyiv with weapons. This led to a high level of tension between China and the West. Relations were further strained during the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to self-ruled and democratic Taiwan, which China considers part of its territory. In turn, Moscow fully sympathized with Beijing during the visit, and Putin accused Washington of "destabilizing" the world. During the economic forum, Putin is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with the leader of the Burmese military council, Min Aung Hlaing. Russia and China have been accused of supplying the Burmese military junta with weapons that have been used to attack civilians since last year's coup. In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who visited Burma and Cambodia in August, will host his Thai counterpart Don Pramodwinai on Tuesday. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit scheduled for September 15-16 in Uzbekistan could be another opportunity to strengthen relations between Moscow and Beijing. According to reports, Putin is expected to hold an in-person meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has not left China since 2020 due to the Covid epidemic. The two leaders last met in Beijing in early February, ahead of the Winter Olympics, days before Putin launched an attack on Ukraine