Following the announcement of a "relationship with no limits" on Feb. 4, 2022, just prior to the Beijing Winter Olympics, Vladimir Putin's Russia invaded Ukraine under the false pretense of de-Nazifying its neighbor.
Many expected Beijing to distance itself from Moscow's explicit aggression. However, one year after the unprovoked attack on Ukraine, we see Sino-Russia relations have deepened.
Beijing has chosen a pro-Russian neutrality position, with President Xi Jinping traveling to Moscow this week for a three-day state visit. This is not an endorsement of the invasion or of Putin. It is a clear indication of the importance China places on the deepening Sino-Russian alignment and the reality that neither country can afford a geopolitical divorce.