Body language experts say Xi looked at Putin "like a little brother". (2023)

A body language expert said that the Chinese presidentXi Jinpinglooked at his Russian counterpart Vladimirto put on"like a little brother" on Monday at the first televised meeting of Xi's state visit to Moscow.

The expert said Xi appeared more relaxed and authoritative, revealing other telltale signs that the Chinese leader is now wielding all power as the two-day talks for Xi's state visit to Moscow came to a close on Tuesday.

Karen Leong, chief executive of Singapore-based Influence Solutions, said Xi hit Putin for a split second when he reached out for a handshake, suggesting that "even if he is the one visiting Moscow, he is the only". relationship'.

Louise Mahler, expert in body language and attitude-based leadershipmelbourne, Australia, took a similar view, noting that Xi had placed his hand on Putin's, which may also indicate a degree of dominance in the stock market.

As they sat down in a polite exchange through translators and greeted each other as a "dear friend," Mahler said Putin leaned forward, shook his leg, clenched his fist and looked at the floor, indicating an underlying emotion.

For his part, Xi was "calm and confident."

Leong noticed the same tics in Putin, in contrast to an apparently relaxed demeanor.

"If you compare him to Xi, Xi is the composite statesman," he said. "He's very serious, he has great eye contact, he looks at Putin like an older brother... [to] a younger couple."

Putin, 70, is a few months older than Xi, 69, and has been in power for more than twice as long.

Leong said Xi indicated he too was feeling some pressure by blinking an unusual number of times during the meeting.

Kim Hyung-hee, director of the Korea Body Language Lab, said the firm handshake and occasions when the men tried to avoid eye contact showed the stakes were high for both.

“They have high expectations of the meeting. You can see the tension there, and you know that there are no true friends in politics.

Rumors about the deteriorating health, mental state and unstable position of the Russian president surfaced long before he ordered the invasion on February 24, 2022. The following year, the rumors only intensified as the war seemed to be taking its toll. .

Footage from meetings and official appearances showed him clinging to a table, tapping his feet seemingly uncontrollably and looking unsteady as he walked, whereas in recent years he has been swollen and bloated.

Putin was seen limping while making a surprise visit to Crimea on Saturday amid allegations that he suffered from ill-health, a day after a war crimes arrest warrant was issued for the Russian leader.

His visit marked the ninth anniversary of Russia's annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula.

The footage appeared to show Putin at the Sevastopol naval port, which has come under repeated Ukrainian attacks in recent months.

His arrival came a day after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for war crimes.

Putin was seen with his successor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, the governor of occupied Sevastopol, surrounded by six burly bodyguards who appeared to be wearing bulletproof vests.

The leader appeared uncomfortable to walk, in contrast to previous performances last week in Moscow and the Siberian city of Ulan-Ude.

Western countries are sure to mull over every detail of the negotiations between two of the world's most powerful but secretive leaders as Putin seeks Xi's support for his invasion of Ukraine and his help closing trade gaps that have arisen from sweeping Western sanctions. .

After talks with Xi in the Kremlin on Tuesday, Putin said the Chinese proposals could serve as the basis for a peace deal in Ukraine, but the West and kyiv were not ready.

Putin accused Western powers of fighting "to the last Ukrainian" after talks with Xi in the Kremlin, which Putin said showed growing trade, energy and political ties between China and Russia.

Xi, speaking through a translator, described his talks with Putin as "frank and friendly", reiterated China's "neutral stance" on Ukraine and called for dialogue.

"We believe that many of the provisions of the peace plan put forward by China are in line with the Russian approaches and can be taken as the basis for a peaceful solution if they are arranged in the West and in Kiev. However, so far we have not seen such a provision of their part," Putin said.

China's proposal, a 12-point document calling for de-escalation and an eventual ceasefire in Ukraine, does not include details on how to end the war.

The United States rejected the Chinese proposal amid Beijing's refusal to condemn Russia over Ukraine, saying a ceasefire would now secure Russia's territorial gains and give Putin's army more time to regroup.

kyiv welcomed China's diplomatic commitment, but said Russia must withdraw its troops from Ukraine and stressed the importance of Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At the end of the two-day talks on Tuesday, Xi and his Russian counterpart stressed that "responsible dialogue" was the best way to consistently resolve the crisis in Ukraine, Chinese state media reported.

According to Chinese state media, the Russian side reiterated its commitment to resume peace talks as soon as possible.

Both sides said that in order to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, the "legitimate security concerns" of all countries must be respected and clashes between camps avoided, Chinese state media reported.

Putin said after talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Moscow on Tuesday that the two leaders paid close attention to Beijing's peace proposals during one-on-one talks.

Putin hailed Russia's growing trade, energy and political ties with China, aimed at consolidating their countries' "borderless" partnership.

The two leaders signed a series of "strategic cooperation" documents after talks that Putin called "successful and constructive" and showed that China is clearly Russia's most important economic partner.

"I am convinced that our diverse cooperation will continue to develop for the benefit of the peoples of our countries," Putin said in a televised address.

Xi's state visit is a big boost for Putin, who is facing what he sees as a hostile West bent on inflicting a "strategic defeat" on Russia.

The Chinese leader visited Moscow days after an international court issued an arrest warrant for him over Russia's crackdown on Ukraine, where Russian forces have made little progress in recent months despite heavy casualties.

Putin said that Russia, China and Mongolia have finalized agreements on a proposed Power of Siberia 2 pipeline to deliver Russian gas to China and that Moscow is ready to increase oil exports to Beijing.

Putin also said that Moscow is ready to help Chinese companies replace Western companies that left Russia because of the conflict in Ukraine.

The proposed Power of Siberia 2 pipeline would deliver 50 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas annually from Russia to China via Mongolia.

Moscow floated the idea many years ago, but it gained urgency when Russia turned to China to replace Europe as its biggest gas customer.

Xi said China and Russia should work more closely to promote more "practical cooperation."

"The early harvest of [our] cooperation is visible and the cooperation is progressing," Xi Putin was quoted as saying by Hong Kong cable TV.

Russia's Gazprom is already supplying gas to China through the Power of Siberia pipeline in a 30-year, $400 billion deal that began in late 2019. This pipeline runs for approximately 3,000 km (1,865 miles).

Russia's gas exports to China remain a small fraction of the record 177 billion cubic meters shipped to Europe in 2018-19. Since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022, volumes to Europe have been reduced and reached around 62 billion cubic meters in 2022.

Putin said on Tuesday that Russia will supply at least 98 billion cubic meters of gas to China by 2030.

Xi has invited his Russian counterpart to visit China in 2023, the state-run RIA news agency said on Tuesday.

Putin said on Tuesday that Britain plans to supply Ukraine with tank munitions containing depleted uranium, saying this heralds the West's shift toward supplying Kiev with nuclear-based weapons. He said that Russia would react if that happened, but did not elaborate.

Washington condemned Xi's state visit, saying the timing, just days after Putin was charged with war crimes by an international tribunal, suggested Beijing was providing Moscow with "diplomatic cover" to commit more crimes.

It was Xi's first trip abroad since he won an unprecedented third term last month. The Chinese leader has tried to portray Beijing as a potential peacemaker in Ukraine, even as he deepens economic ties with his closest ally.

Russian state news agencies reported that Putin and Xi held informal talks for almost four and a half hours on Monday.

In a televised address, Putin told Xi that he respected China's proposals to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. He confessed to being "a bit jealous" of China's "very effective system for developing the economy and strengthening the state."

For his part, Xi praised Putin and predicted that the Russians would re-elect him next year.

Moscow has been publicly touting plans for a visit with Xi for months. But the timing gave new meaning to the Chinese leader's personal support after the International Criminal Court on Friday issued an arrest warrant charging Putin with war crimes over the deportation of children from Ukraine.

Moscow denies the illegal deportation of children and says it took in orphans to protect them. He opened criminal proceedings against the prosecutor's office and the court judges. Beijing said the arrest warrant reflected double standards.

The West says the order is designed to make a pariah of the Russian leader.

"The fact that President Xi traveled to Russia days after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for President Putin suggests that China does not feel responsible for holding the Kremlin responsible for atrocities in Ukraine," the secretary said. of US State, Anton Blinken.

"Instead of condemning them, he prefers to give Russia diplomatic cover to continue committing these serious crimes."

White House spokesman John Kirby said Xi should use his influence to pressure Putin to withdraw troops from Ukraine and Washington feared Beijing would call for a ceasefire allowing Russian troops to remain.

China has published a proposal to resolve the Ukraine crisis, widely dismissed in the West as a ploy to buy Putin time to regroup his military forces and consolidate his control over the occupied territories.

Washington has said in recent weeks that it fears China could arm Russia, which Beijing denies.

Foreign policy analysts said that while Putin was seeking strong support from Xi in Ukraine, he doubted his visit to Moscow would result in military support.

"China seems more interested in acting as a facilitator for peace efforts toward Ukraine than increasing support for the Russian invasion," said Robert Murrett, associate director of Syracuse University's Institute for Security Law and Policy.

kyiv, which says the war cannot end until Russia withdraws its troops, greeted Beijing's peace proposal with caution when it was unveiled last month.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said China's arming of Russia could lead to World War III and asked Xi to speak with him.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a Russian Su-35 fighter jet flew over the Baltic Sea on Monday after two US strategic bombers flew towards the Russian border but returned to base after their departure.

The development follows the crash of a US military surveillance drone in the Black Sea on March 14 after being intercepted by Russian planes, in the first known direct military encounter between Russia and the United States since Russia invaded Africa.

Several European Union countries agreed in Brussels on Monday to jointly purchase 1 million 155mm artillery shells for Ukraine. Both sides fire thousands of shots every day.

The United States announced its latest $350 million military assistance package, which includes more ammunition for HIMARS missile launchers, howitzers and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, as well as HARM missiles, anti-tank weapons and riverboats.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida paid a surprise visit to Kiev on Tuesday, stealing some of the world's attention from China's Asian rival Xi, who is in Moscow on a state visit.

The two visits, some 800 kilometers (500 miles) apart, highlighted the impact of the nearly 13-month war on international diplomacy as the countries trail behind Moscow or Kiev. They follow a week in which China and Japan celebrated diplomatic victories that strengthened their foreign policies.

Kishida, who will chair the Group of Seven summit in May, will meet Zelenskyy in the Ukrainian capital.

Japan has donated more than $7 billion to Ukraine and has taken in more than 2,000 displaced Ukrainians, helping them with housing benefits and support for jobs and education, an unusual move in a country known for its tough immigration policies.

The Russian invasion devastated Ukrainian cities, causing millions of people to flee and killing tens of thousands of civilians.

Fierce fighting continued on Tuesday in the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut, where Ukrainian forces have been holding out since last summer in the longest and bloodiest battle of the war.

Moscow, which has not had a major victory since August, launched a massive winter offensive involving hundreds of thousands of reservists and recently recruited convicts from prisons.

Ukraine, which recaptured large areas in the second half of 2022, has remained largely on the defensive since November, aiming to decimate Russia's attacking forces before launching a planned counteroffensive.