Russia’s Putin, N. Korea’s Kim congratulate China’s Xi Jinping on securing third term

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday on securing an unprecedented third term as leader, and said he looked forward to further developing a “comprehensive partnership” between their two countries.

“The results of the Party Congress fully confirm your high political authority, as well as the unity of the party you lead,” Putin told Xi, according to the Kremlin’s website.

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Xi and Putin signed a “no limits” partnership agreement in February, three weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Since then, China has taken a careful line, criticizing Western sanctions against Russia but stopping short of endorsing or
assisting in the military campaign.

Last month during a face-to-face meeting between the pair, Putin said he understood Xi had “questions and concerns” about the situation in Ukraine, a surprising public acknowledgment of differences between them over the war.

Moscow increasingly sees Beijing as a key geopolitical and economic partner in the face of Western sanctions and isolation, and Putin has sought to foster warm personal ties with Xi.

The Russian president said he was confident that Xi’s reappointment would “strengthen China’s position in the international arena” and help the country realize its vast domestic investment and development plans, the Kremlin said.

North Korea's Kim Jong Un

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has sent his “warmest congratulations” to Chinese President Xi Jinping on securing a third term as head of China’s ruling Communist Party, state media reported Sunday.

The unusually prompt report from Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency came after the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee elected Xi as its general secretary for another five-year term.

“Please accept my warmest congratulations to you upon the glad news that... you were elected again as the general secretary of the Party Central Committee,” read Kim’s message carried by KCNA.

“I, together with you, will shape more beautiful future of the DPRK-China relations meeting the demand of the times,” Kim said, using the acronym of the North's official name.

China is North Korea’s longtime ally and economic benefactor, their relationship forged in the bloodshed of the Korean War, when Mao Zedong sent millions of “volunteers” to fight US-led United Nations forces.

Ties have fluctuated over the years due to Pyongyang’s growing nuclear ambitions, but the two have been working to repair their relationship.

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