Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Moscow this week for Russia's Victory Day Parade, where his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, unleashs a display of military might to help cement ties with Beijing.

The parade, a celebration of the 80th anniversary of the Soviet triumph over Nazi Germany in World War II, aims to showcase Russia’s resilience and ambition on the global stage.

At the Kremlin, Xi declared that China stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Moscow against "hegemonic bullying," a pointed jab at US President Donald Trump's tariff onslaught and crippling sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

"The mutual trust between China and Russia grows ever deeper, with pragmatic cooperation forging an unbreakable bond," Xi said.

Björn Alexander Düben, an expert in Russia-China relations thinks Xi's visit has a "highly symbolic element," noting that, apart from Brazil's President Lula da Silva, Xi was the only major world leader to attend the parade.

Düben, a lecturer in international relations at Forward College Berlin, noted a "personal rapport" between the two leaders and described how Xi "devotes more time to his interaction with Putin than practically any other international leader."

As Western sanctions choke Russia's economy over the Ukraine war, Moscow increasingly counts on Beijing as a lifeline for energy and

© Deutsche Welle