China and Russia Will ‘Speak with a Unified Voice in Global Affairs’

In a multipolar world adhering to the principles of the UN Charter.

Image: Huangshan Tunxi City, China - Streets and shops of Old Town at night.

March 30 (EIRNS)—Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi held talks today in the city of Tunxi, in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui, where they agreed that Russian and China “speak with a unified voice in global affairs.” The two foreign ministers met on the sidelines of the third Meeting of Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan’s Neighbouring Countries on March 31.

Speaking at the meeting of the two ministers, Wang Yi said: “The desire of the two sides to develop bilateral relations has become even stronger; so has the confidence to promote cooperation in various directions. The Chinese side attaches great importance to this,” he stressed.

According to TASS, Wang added that he was ready to work together with his “old friend” Sergey Lavrov to promote the implementation of the agreements reached by the leaders of the two countries, Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, to take China-Russia relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation to a new, higher level in a new era.

For his part, Lavrov said: “We are living through a serious stage in the history of international relations. I am convinced that the outcome of this stage will substantially clarify the international situation. We will move towards a multipolar, equitable and democratic world order with you and other like-minded nations.

“We are interested in ensuring the sustainable and consistent development of our relations with the People’s Republic of China, as agreed by President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping.

“Today, we will review specific steps to ensure that all these agreements are implemented.

“Dear friend, I am happy to speak with you, especially in this wonderful province. I have already been to many provinces in China, and all of them evoke sincere admiration.”

He briefed Wang Yi on the state of negotiations with Ukraine and underlined that Russia was committed to de-escalating tensions and would pursue peace talks and maintain communications with the international community on the issue.

Wang Yi reiterated China’s position on encouraging a multipolar world and adhering to the principles of the UN Charter. He declared that the Ukraine crisis had a complex history and that it was only the outbreak of the long-term accumulation of security conflicts in Europe that led to the crisis, as well as the Cold War mentality which continues to live on. “Under the current situation, we support Russia and Ukraine to continue the peace talks despite difficulties, support the positive results achieved so far in the negotiations, support the cooling of the situation on the ground as soon as possible, and support the efforts made by Russia and other parties to prevent a large-scale humanitarian crisis.”

“In the long run,” Wang continued, “we should learn the lessons of the Ukraine crisis, respond to the legitimate security concerns of all parties based on the principles of mutual respect and indivisibility of security, and build a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture through dialogue and negotiation, so as to achieve long-term stability in Europe.”

A joint statement issued after the talks reported: “The foreign ministers of both countries stated that in light of the challenging international situation, Russia and China continue to strengthen their strategic partnership and speak with a unified voice in global affairs. It was agreed to further bolster foreign policy coordination, enhance cooperation on the bilateral track as well as in various multilateral formats.”

The importance of the relationship was also underlined at the Foreign Ministry briefing the same day, where spokesman Wang Wenbin stated: “There is no ceiling for China-Russia cooperation, no ceiling for us to strive for peace, no ceiling for us to safeguard security and no ceiling for us to oppose hegemony.”

Russia Organizing Ruble-Rupee Payment Method for Oil Exports to India

March 30 (EIRNS)—Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will arrive in New Delhi for a two-day visit to India on March 31, and one of the main topics of discussion will be establishing rouble-rupee denominated payment mechanisms for increased Russian oil exports to India. Since Russia has been subjected to near-total financial sanctions by the West, such non-dollar mechanisms are required to maintain the flow of physical goods for the productive economy.

Such a rupee-rouble trade mechanism could be in place by as early as next week, A. Sakthivel, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO), told CNBC’s “Street Signs” today. The FIEO, a government-backed association representing over 200,000 exporters, oversees India’s export promotion councils. There has been no official announcement yet from the Indian government.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov discussed the widening use of national currencies in remarks to the press today. TASS reported that Peskov was asked about a proposal of State Duma Speaker Vyechaslav Volodin to expand the list of products exported for roubles beyond natural gas, to which Peskov replied: “Widening the practice of using national currencies is an area that our government is also pursuing and we need to move further on all fronts. This is in our interests and in the interests of our partners.”

Russian Economist Glazyev Details Proposal To Reverse the ‘Breakdown of Epochs’

March 30 (EIRNS)—Sergey Glazyev, the prominent Russian economist and currently Minister for Integration and Macroeconomics at the Eurasian Economic Commission, the executive body of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), granted an extensive interview on March 27 to Business Online (business-gazeta.ru) electronic newspaper, in which he detailed his proposal for a new international financial architecture.

Speaking of academics and specialists in countries such as Russia, India and China, he stated: “We are currently working on a draft international agreement on the introduction of a new world settlement currency, pegged to the national currencies of the participating countries and to exchange-traded goods that determine real values.... Objectively, the rouble could become a reserve currency along with the yuan and the rupee. It would be possible to switch to a multi-currency system based on national currencies. But you still need some equivalent for pricing.”

He went on to explain the central importance of issuing for productive activity. “Global economic cooperation is based on joint investments aimed at improving the well-being of peoples.... Macroeconomic stabilization in the modern economy can be achieved only on the basis of accelerated scientific and technological progress.”

Glazyev praised China’s success, particularly on this point: “The entire banking system in China is state-owned, it operates as a single development institution, directing cash flows to expand output and develop new technologies.... [They invest in] expanded reproduction of the real sector of the economy, focusing on financing development investments.”

Earlier in the interview Glazyev presented a broad strategic evaluation of the context of the current Ukraine crisis: the demise of the Western, dollar-based system, and in particular the British-American geopolitical order. As Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had done in earlier remarks, Glazyev emphasized the role of Zbigniew Brzezinski:

“All the so-called geopolitical science that was written in London was reduced, in fact, to a set of recommendations on how to destroy Russia as the dominant force in Eurasia ... Brzezinski’s famous theorem says that in order to defeat Russia as a superpower, you need to tear Ukraine away from it. All this political dogma, which, it would seem, has long gone down in history, is nevertheless reproduced today in the thinking of the American political elite.... They used Ukraine as an outpost, or rather, as a tool for undermining Russia, weakening it, and in the future for destroying it as a sovereign state, in accordance with Brzezinski’s proposal.”