Xi And Putin Tout 'New Type' Of World Order In Beijing

But they have stopped short of launching any major joint effort to challenge US power. This was illustrated by the muted response of both countries to the ousting of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in January, as well as their limited support for Iran in its war with the US and Israel.

One reason for this is the asymmetry in their capacity to help each other. Russia lacks the capacity to support China in the economic and technological domains, which are central to the Sino-American rivalry.

In terms of overcoming the US tariffs imposed on Chinese goods, Moscow can offer Beijing neither an alternative nor much relief. The Russian market is not rich or attractive enough for Chinese companies, even before the possible fallout from secondary sanctions is considered.

Russia is also limited in its ability to help Beijing bypass US export controls designed to restrict China's access to advanced technologies, from semiconductor manufacturing equipment to artificial intelligence hardware.

Western sanctions and recurrent failures to modernisz the Russian economy have caused Russia to fall behind in the global technology race. And since 2022, Russia has been forced to rely on China for a number of technologies, from cars and laptops to 5G mobile networks.

China is in a different position. It has political, financial and economic means to support the Kremlin in its confrontation with the west. However, keen to preserve its own global interests, Beijing is highly selective in the support it provides to Moscow.

Chinese state propaganda mirrors Russian talking points and repeats Russia's justification for its war in Ukraine, blaming the west and its“expansion” into former Soviet territories. China has also provided Russia with dual-use components like chips and fiber-optic cables without which the Kremlin could not sustain its war effort.

But, at the same time, China has refrained from providing lethal weapons to Russia. And Chinese armed forces, which conduct regular exercises with their Russian counterparts and carry out joint air and naval patrols around Japan and South Korea, do not participate in similar activities in Europe.

China has also consistently delayed its final commitment to the proposed Power of Siberia-2 gas pipeline. The planned pipeline would transport additional natural gas from Siberia to China, partially compensating Russia's loss of revenue from the European market.

Clearly, it is Beijing that dictates the pace of and areas for cooperation between the two countries. And Russia's leadership seems ready to accept this “junior partner” status.

The Kremlin has sought to reconcile conflicting interests between Russia and China in recent years, particularly in central Asia, rather than challenge Beijing. For example, Moscow has remained silent on the presence of Chinese troops in Tajikistan, which was part of Russia's former sphere of influence.