During his address to the Foreign Ministry Board meeting Nov. 18, Putin reported that the center of gravity of the world’s politics and economy is shifting towards Asia and therefore Russia is continuing to develop its relations with Asian nations. “We will continue strengthening ties with our good neighbors and friends in the People’s Republic of China,” he said. “Our bilateral ties have now reached the highest level in history and amount to a comprehensive strategic partnership.” He stated that not everybody likes this. “Some of our Western partners are openly trying to drive a wedge between Moscow and Beijing,” he said. “We are well aware of this. Together with our Chinese friends, we will continue responding to such attempts by expanding our political, economic and other cooperation, and coordinating steps in the world arena.”
On the other hand, Russia-U.S. relations “to put it mildly, are in an unsatisfactory state,” Putin said. “The diplomats from both countries are experiencing major problems. Embassy staffs have been cut and the embassies cannot function properly, let alone systematically engage in expanding bilateral ties. These are the consequences of the provocative policy pursued by U.S. authorities, which began to practice large-scale bans and restrictions for Russian diplomats five years ago.”
