THE leaders of Russia and China yesterday hailed with a champagne toast a new "strategic partnership" to take their countries into the 21st century.
In a day marked by mutual public support on difficult international issues, President Jiang Zemin bolstered President Boris Yeltsin's opposition to the eastward expansion of Nato while the Russian president backed China over Taiwan and Tibet.
After a two-hour summit meeting, Mr Yeltsin said Mr Jiang had "resolutely joined Russia's view that Nato's expansion toward its borders is impermissible". The Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Mr Shen Guofang, quoted the Mr Jiang as expressing "his understanding and support for the Russian position on this question."
He quoted Mr Jiang as saying: "The expansion of military alliance in the post-Cold War era would not serve the interests of all, and is not consistent with the trend of the times." Previously, China has said that the question of Nato's extension was only of concern to the parties involved.
The presidential signing in the Great Hall of the People of a third Joint Statement between the two countries probably marks the warmest period of Sino-Russian relations since the early days of the People's Republic. Mr Yeltsin said: "I can't name a single question on which we would have different opinions." Mr Jiang was equally expansive: "Sino-Russian friendly relations have entered into a new age."
Both countries deny they are forming an alliance, but a successful visit at this time is clearly in the interests of both presidents. Mr Yeltsin is facing June elections at home, while China is at loggerheads with the US on many issues.
Yesterday's Sino-Russian political declaration, in a pointed reference to the West and particularly Washington warned: "Hegemonism, power politics and repeated imposition of pressure on other countries have continued to occur. Bloc politics has taken up new manifestations. World peace and development still face serious challenges." The catchphrase of the day was "global multi-polarisation".
Not allowing details to spoil the atmosphere was in the spirit of the day, and both sides sidestepped the fact that China is still at odds with the other nuclear powers on a Comprehensive Test
Ban Treaty.
Mr Yeltsin claimed China had assented to agree on a complete end to nuclear tests by the end of the year. But the foreign ministry spokesman, while not publicly contradicting the Russian president, made it clear Beijing had not dropped its view that "peaceful nuclear explosions" should be excluded from such a treaty.
Among the raft of agreements signed by the two presidents is a decision that there will be regular meetings between leaders of the two countries, and that a telephone "shot-line" will be set up between Moscow and Beijing.