Putin, Xi Speak in First Summit Since Wagner Mercenary Uprising in Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Heads of State Council via a video conference at the Kremlin in Moscow on July 4, 2023. Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi shared the same stage on Tuesday, speaking at a virtual summit of a Shanghai-headquartered regional security organization in the wake of an aborted Wagner mutiny that had political implications for both nations.

Both leaders spoke about the importance of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a regional power bloc led by China and Russia that is aimed at countering perceived Western influence in Central Asia.

The Russian president praised the group’s support to the Kremlin during the short-lived revolt last month.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank my colleagues from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization countries who expressed support for the actions of the Russian leadership to protect the constitutional order life and safety of citizens,” Putin told the videoconference from the Kremlin. “We highly appreciate it.”

Moscow would continue to “resist external pressure, sanctions, and provocations,” Putin told the summit hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who just wrapped up a high-profile state visit to the United States.

Putin said Moscow intended to deepen ties with SCO members and increase the share of settlements in national currencies. According to Putin, more than 80 percent of commercial transactions between Russia and China are conducted in rubles and yuan, and the share of the Russian currency in export transactions with other SCO member states in 2022 exceeded 40 percent.

The SCO includes the four Central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, all former Soviet republics. Pakistan became a member in 2017. Belarus is also in line for membership.

Putin’s remark at Tuesday’s video gathering marked his first appearance at an international meeting since the mutiny by Russia’s Wagner mercenary group last month.

Xi, who clinked glasses with Putin and reaffirmed the “no limit“ partnership with Putin during a March trip to Moscow, has yet to hold a public meeting with Putin. Some China observers suggested the armed uprising, though brief, ”has cracked“ the China-led coalition that is seeking to overturn international order.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping make a toast during a reception following their talks at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 21, 2023. Pavel Byrkin/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) remained silent on June 24 as Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin waged an insurrection against Putin, who described the actions as a “stab in the back.”

In just 24 hours, Prigozhin and his forces seized Rostov-on-Don, a crucial logistical hub for Russia’s war efforts in Ukraine, and advanced hundreds of miles toward Moscow.

When the Chinese authorities addressed the chaotic insurrection for the first time, it was already after Prigozhin’s forces returned to their base under a deal with the Kremlin.

“This is Russia’s internal affairs,” a spokesperson of Beijing’s foreign ministry said in a statement released on June 25. “As Russia’s friendly neighbor and comprehensive strategic partner of coordination for the new era, China supports Russia in maintaining national stability and achieving development and prosperity.”

The brief comment followed a June 25 meeting in Beijing between Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko.

Wagner Revolt ‘Really Spooked’ Beijing

Miles Yu, a senior fellow and director of the China Center at Hudson Institute, said Wagner’s revolt had several implications for the Chinese regime.

“The most important thing is that Prigozhin’s revolt created an alternative to a very unpopular regime,” Yu said in a podcast on June 27. “This is what the CCP fears most. That is, any potential Wagner-type of crack within the Chinese system is going to be an alternative to the Xi Jinping regime.”

Additionally, Yu said the revolt “really spooked the Chinese leadership” because of the regime’s fear of defectors.

“Defection prevention is a top priority during much of the PRC regimes since the 1950s,” Yu said, referring to China’s official name, the People’s Republic of China. “Every time you have a defector flying a plane to Taiwan, for example, or South Korea, it becomes a huge political earthquake within the Chinese regime.”

Yu, who served as the senior China policy and planning adviser to then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, added that “fear of coup is very real for Xi,” given that Xi had purged many Chinese generals since taking power in 2022. For example, Yu pointed to the downfalls of former Chinese top military generals Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou. Guo and Xu were known to be loyal to former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin.

Fear of a military coup meant that Xi had decided to prohibit Chinese military officers from contacting foreign countries, Yu added, explaining why Xi rejected Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s proposal for resuming bilateral direct military communication when the two met in China last month.

“I think it’s absolutely taboo right now for any PLA officers to contact foreign government entities and their counterparts,” Yu said, referring to the Chinese military’s official name, the People’s Liberation Army.

China's leader Xi Jinping attends a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (not pictured) in Beijing on June 19, 2023. Leah Millis/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

Speaking via a video link from Beijing on Tuesday, Xi urged solidarity among member states and declared firm opposition to “any interference in internal affairs by any county,” in a veiled reference to Washington and its allies.

“We must be highly vigilant against external forces inciting a ‘new cold war’ in the region and creating confrontations between camps,” Xi said.

The leader of the communist regime called on the member states to focus on “practical cooperation and accelerating economic growth,” according to the readout from Beijing’s foreign ministry.

Prior to Tuesday’s virtual summit, Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu met with Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, the head of the Russian navy, in Beijing, during which Li reaffirmed the regime’s ties with the Russian military.

The CCP hopes the two sides’ navies could “strengthen communication at all levels,” “organize joint exercises, patrols and competitions on a regular basis,” and “expand practical cooperation,” China’s defense ministry quoted Li as saying.

‘Complicit in the Barbaric Acts’

Blinken, the highest-level U.S. official to travel to China since President Joe Biden took office in 2021, spent two days in China in June, concluding his trip by having a “robust conversation” with Xi.

A day after Blinken’s visit, the seemingly improved Sino-U.S. ties took a turn for the worse after Biden referred to Xi as a “dictator,” a remark that drew protests from the CCP.

Some Republicans took to Twitter to applaud Biden for giving an honest answer.

“China wants Joe Biden to apologize, but Biden told the truth. Xi Jinping IS a dictator,” wrote former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who is seeking GOP nomination for the 2024 White House race.

“Despite recent protests from the Chinese Communist Party, President Biden got it right: Xi is a dictator,” wrote Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska).

A giant screen showing news footage of Chinese leader Xi Jinping speaking virtually at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting, which was held in India, at a shopping mall in Beijing on July 4, 2023. Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images

China’s role in Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine has long been under scrutiny. The U.S. government has sanctioned some Chinese entities for supporting Russian military and defense industries.

On July 1, Nikkei Asia published its own investigation, saying that Russian companies had imported at least 37 Chinese civilian drones between December 2022 and April this year.

Citing customs clearance records, the outlet said the drones were purchased “for use in the special military operation,” which is the term Putin has used to refer to Kremlim’s war in Ukraine. Some of the imported drones were made by DJI, the world’s largest consumer drone maker, according to the outlet.

The Pentagon added DJI to its list of “Chinese military companies” in October last year.

In response to the outlet’s findings, Gordon Chang, a senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute, called Xi a “war criminal” on Twitter.

#China’s direct and continuous support for #Russia’s war effort in #Ukraine makes the #CCP regime complicit in the barbaric acts of the #Russian forces,” Chang wrote. “#XiJinping, like #VladimirPutin, is a war criminal.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.