Xi Jinping’s deputy on military matters met with Vladimir Putin

Deputy Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of China (the highest governing body of the country’s armed forces) Zhang Yuxia visited Moscow on November 8, where he held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. They met the latter quite recently, at the end of October, at the Xiangshan security forum in Beijing.

The 73-year-old Chinese colonel general is one of two vice-chairmen of the Central Military Commission Xi Jinping and, according to the Chinese military hierarchy, is considered a more important figure than the PRC defense minister (the post has remained vacant since October 24 after the resignation of Li Shangfu). In addition, he is the chairman of the PRC part of the Russian-Chinese mixed intergovernmental commission on military-technical cooperation.

Putin’s trilateral meeting with Zhang and Shoigu took place, as the president said, “according to tradition” at the country residence in Novo-Ogarevo, where the Chinese general was already received in 2017. The Russian leader asked to convey to Xi “the best wishes and words of gratitude for the warm welcome.” during the Belt and Road Forum in October 2023.

Putin assured that Russia and China “are not building any military alliances following the example of the Cold War.” According to Putin, contacts between the two states in the military and military-technical spheres are “acquiring a new level.” He particularly emphasized cooperation in high-tech areas – both in space, including high-orbit groupings, and in modern types of weapons.

Separately, Putin focused on criticizing the actions of the NATO alliance, which, according to him, in violation of its own doctrinal documents, is making attempts to go beyond the designated geographical boundaries. “More and more, the United States is drawing all the countries of the alliance into creating a tense situation in the Asia-Pacific region. They are trying to create new military-political alliances there,” he noted. At the same time, Russia and China, Putin added, are reacting to such a course calmly and carefully, strengthening their defense capabilities.

Zhang responded by conveying Xi’s “warmest greetings and best wishes.” After that, he expressed respect for the fact that in the conditions of “extreme Western sanctions” “no difficulty bends you [Путина] and Russia” (quotes from the Kremlin website).

Prior to this, Shoigu during the negotiations focused on the fact that relations between the two countries in the military field are actively developing in all directions. “We regularly conduct joint operational and combat training activities on land, in the air and at sea, shoulder to shoulder we successfully practice combat training tasks of varying complexity,” he noted.

The Chinese military leader told Shoigu that the two countries “always support each other on issues related to the core interests and key concerns of the parties.” Moreover, Zhang saw in relations between Russia and China “a model of strategic trust between powers.” He called the goals of the visit to Moscow the implementation of the agreements of the heads of state, as well as the promotion of practical cooperation in the military sphere. “It is necessary to face challenges, overcome difficulties, keep up with the times in order to continuously open up new dimensions of military cooperation,” said the PRC representative.

Zhang Youxia is one of the most respected Chinese military officers, as he has a reputation as a military leader who enjoys special personal favor with Xi – their fathers served together in the 1940s. His March reappointment to the position may also indicate this, despite the fact that he has long overcome the unspoken age limit for civil service in the PRC – 68 years. Zhang previously headed the CMC’s Weapons Development Office and also led China’s human spaceflight program.

The last meeting between Shoigu and Zhang was in fact a meeting of the Russian-Chinese commission on military-technical cooperation, says Vasily Kashin, director of the Center for Comprehensive and International Studies at the Higher School of Economics. The previous meeting at the Xiangshan forum can hardly be called a full-fledged visit, he says – there Shoigu only made a speech, talked with Zhang, and then immediately flew back.