Putin discovers the limits of comrade Xi’s friendship

Putin speaking with Xi during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation leaders’ summit in Samarkand. — AFP

THERE were “no limits” to their bonds, declared the leaders of Russia and China earlier this year. More than six months, one messy invasion and a plethora of Western sanctions later, it turns out that perhaps there were a few.

The slogan didn’t even appear to surface in the comments by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin at their encounter last Thursday in Central Asia.