The Russian invasion

The Russian invasionThe China-Russia relationship   

China and Russia's trade rushes in the shadow of the war 

China and Russia are forging ever closer ties – especially on the trade front. During the first eleven months of 2023, the trade had a turnover corresponding to over SEK 2,000 billion, reports the New York Times. 

Chinese vehicle manufacturers currently have 55 percent of the Russian market – just two years ago the share was eight percent. Russians buy almost only fossil-fuel cars, while the Chinese market is increasingly switching to electric cars.  

 

The cultural exchange is also increasing. Russian propaganda is widely disseminated in Chinese state media, bolstering Russia's image, and Chinese influencers make pilgrimages to Harbin in the bordering province of Heilongjiang to take photos in Russian garb next to a Russian cathedral.  

 

The West has largely turned its back on Russia after the invasion of Ukraine, but China insists it does not have to choose between Russia and Europe, writes the NYT. 

 

*******************************

 

The Russian invasion|The response of the outside world 

  

Orbán: Military operation in Ukraine - no war  

 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Thursday repeated the Kremlin's rhetoric that the war in Ukraine is not a war, reports AFP. 

 

- It is a military operation [...] as long as there has not been a declaration of war between the two countries. When Russia declares war on Ukraine, it is war, he said during an annual press conference.  

 

Orbán added that there is "reason to rejoice" as long as no declaration of war is made, as that would mean general mobilization - something he "would not wish on anyone".