Why China and Russia are closer than ever

China's leader Xi Jinping

meets Russian President

this week in the highest-level visit by a world leader to Russia since before the pandemic.

More than a year after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, Western officials will be closely watching the meeting for signs of how far China may be willing to go to mediate the conflict.

Putin treated Xi to ice cream for his birthday when they met in Tajikistan in 2019. Photo Alexei Druzhinin/Agence France-Presse - Getty Images

Chinese officials have framed the meeting in part as a mission to promote constructive talks between Russia and Ukraine, even as US officials have been skeptical of Xi's recent efforts to become a global peacemaker.

Here are five things to know about the China-Russia relationship:

Are China and Russia allies?

China and Russia are not formal allies, which means they have not pledged to defend each other with military support.

But the two countries are close

, a relationship that deepened during the Ukraine war, as Russia became increasingly isolated from many other countries.

Chinese officials have said the current relationship is at an "all-time high."

The association is fueled by a shared goal of trying to

American power and influence.

Relations between China and Russia have not always been so cordial.

Fierce adversaries in the 1960s, the two sides clashed in 1969 over disputed territory along their border, raising fears of a nuclear confrontation between the two countries.

Putin and Xi during a meeting in Uzbekistan last September, in which both leaders agreed to carry out more joint military maneuvers.Photo Alexandr Demyanchuk/Sputnik

The two countries have also been

for influence in Central Asia, a region the Kremlin has long regarded as its turf but is increasingly important to China's geopolitical and economic ambitions.

China is building more railways, highways and oil pipelines in former Soviet republics such as

, which remain dependent on Russia as a crucial security partner.

How close are Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin?

Just before the start of the Ukraine war in February 2022, Xi and Putin publicly stated that the relationship between their countries "had no limits."

Xi has often described Mr. Putin as his best friend.

During an economic forum in Russia in 2018, the two fried Russian pancakes and drank shots of vodka together.

For Xi's 66th birthday in 2019, Putin gave him a cake and a giant box of ice cream.

In an article published in a Chinese newspaper on Sunday, Putin said the two had a "very cordial relationship", noting that they had met some 40 times

recent years and had always found time to speak at events "without a tie".

What is the economic relationship between Russia and China?

Economic ties between China and Russia have

significantly since Russia's first invasion of Ukraine in 2014, when it annexed Crimea.

At the time, China helped Russia

imposed by the Obama Administration that were meant to cut off Russia's access to world markets.

Following the tightening of sanctions against Russia in the wake of the start of the Ukraine war last year, China has helped supply many of the products that Russia previously bought from Western allies, such as computer chips, smartphones and necessary raw

. for military equipment.

Total trade between Russia and China skyrocketed last year.

What does Putin want from China?

Putin needs China to help him bolster his economy, battered by Western sanctions.

For the Russian leader, China has increasingly become a lifeline for investment and trade.

After Western countries tightened their purchases of Russian crude and natural gas last year, China

the decline by buying more energy from Russia.

At the start of the Ukraine war, Russia asked China for military equipment and economic aid, according to US officials.

US officials have recently claimed that China is

handing over weapons to Russia for use in Ukraine, a claim that China has denied.

China has refrained from condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine, despite the fact that its foreign policy is based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Although China has presented itself as a neutral party in the Ukraine war, it has backed Russia's arguments, blaming the United States and NATO for starting the conflict.

But China has also been hesitant to fully back Russia.

The turmoil and instability stemming from the war could threaten China's growth and complicate its efforts to strengthen its economic ties around the world.

Last September, after Putin and Xi met in person, Putin acknowledged that China had raised "questions and concerns" about the war in Ukraine.

What does Xi want from Russia?

Xi wants Putin to join him as a like-minded ally in challenging US and Western dominance.

In an article published in a Russian newspaper on Monday before the visit, Xi said China and Russia should

to overcome challenges to their security, including "harmful acts of

."

Xi has taken a tougher stance against what he calls a US effort to contain China's rise, portraying China as a nation under siege, just as Putin has done in his speeches to the Russians.

Xi has urged Chinese industries to reduce their reliance on Western technology, hailing China's growth as proof that it need not embrace Western political values.

China has been buying more advanced weapons from Russia to modernize its military, and the two nations have increased their joint military exercises.

Last year, while President Biden was visiting Tokyo, China and Russia sent bombers over the Northeast Asian seas as a show of force.

Nicole Hong is a journalist specializing in China.

She previously worked for The Wall Street Journal, where she was part of a team that won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting.

c.2023 The New York Times Company

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