Less than a week after holding talks with President Trump, China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, met with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia in Beijing on Wednesday,casting the two countries’ relationship as a stabilizing force in a world thrown into tumult by the United States.
“The tide of unilateral hegemony is running rampant,” Mr. Xi said to Mr. Putin, according to Chinese state media. It was an oblique reference to the United States, which this year launched a war in Iran and violently seized the leader of Venezuela.
Speaking to Mr. Putin inside the Great Hall of the People, Mr. Xi called for a “complete cessation of hostilities” in the Middle East, warning that it would be “unacceptable” if fighting renewed. The Trump administration has been considering relaunching strikes, which have been paused since a cease-fire was announced last month, to force Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Mr. Xi acknowledged the pain the crisis is inflicting on China, which relies on the strategic waterway for about 40 percent of its oil imports. There is also growing concern that Iran’s ongoing shutdown of the strait could devastate global trade, the chief engine of China’s economy.
“An early end to the conflict would help reduce disruptions to energy supply stability, the smooth operation of industrial and supply chains, and international trade order,” Mr. Xi said.
The two countries were eager to show they had enhanced ties. Mr. Xi hailed “a new phase of more active engagement and faster development” between the two countries.
Mr. Putin was equally effusive and opened his remarks to Mr. Xi — whom he again called “my dear friend” — with a Chinese proverb expressing longing: “One day apart feels like three autumns.”
The Russian leader also signaled that his relationship with Mr. Xi remained close, noting that they “constantly seek to coordinate our positions.” He cast the two countries as equals working together to forge “a more just and democratic world order.”
“A difficult process of shaping a polycentric world based on a balance of interests of all countries is underway,” Mr. Putin said, likely referring to what he argues is the erosion of U.S. global dominance.
But beneath that show of solidarity lies an uneven relationship. Russia has become increasingly dependent on China since launching an invasion of Ukraine four years ago that has turned into a costly stalemate, as Russian soldiers struggle to gain ground and the country’s economy falters.
Russia also relies heavily on China for dual-use technologies — civilian capabilities that can be applied to the battlefield. Mr. Putin will want to ensure that China maintains that supply.
At the same time, the oil shortage caused by the war in Iran has only enhanced Russia’s position as an energy supplier to China. Mr. Putin stressed that Russia “remains a reliable supplier of resources amid the Middle East crisis, while China acts as a responsible consumer of these resources.”
Mr. Putin, who is traveling with Russian energy executives, has been urging China for years to agree to open another major gas pipeline between the two countries. Known as Power of Siberia 2, the pipeline would link Siberian extraction sites with northwest China through Mongolia. Beijing is concerned the pipeline would make China too dependent on one nation for energy supplies. The project has been stalled amid disputes over key details, including how much China will pay for the gas.
No agreement was signed on the proposed pipeline on Wednesday. Dmitri S. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said that “some nuances still need to be agreed upon.”
The two countries did sign more than 40 documents, according to the Kremlin, the highlight of which seemed to be a joint declaration on “the emergence of a multipolar world and a new type of international relations.”
That document was heavy on lofty rhetoric laying out a vision of a post-U.S.-led world order that promises nations more equality and “mutual respect” — even as those stated ideals clash sharply with Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and Beijing’s aggressive muscle-flexing across Asia.
Mr. Putin seemed to offer a glimpse of how he might want that world to look. Speaking to a Chinese engineer whom he had met during his first visit to China in 2000, Mr. Putin told him: “We are ready to cooperate with all partners around the world, including the United States. We discussed this with President Xi today.”
The remark hinted at a vision in which Washington, Beijing and Moscow operate as great, equal powers managing the world among themselves rather than one in which the United States dominates the rest.
“The recent interactions among the three major powers have indeed raised the possibility that the cooperation between China and Russia could provide some new space for the involvement of the United States,” said Zhang Xin, a professor at the Russian Studies Center of the East China Normal University.
“The construction of a multipolar world does not necessarily exclude the United States; what it rejects is specific hegemonic behaviors,” he said.
Yuri Ushakov, Mr. Putin’s foreign policy aide, said that Mr. Putin and Mr. Trump might meet in the Chinese city of Shenzhen in November, presumably on the sidelines of a regional economic forum. Mr. Ushakov also said that Russia was expecting Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Mr. Trump’s special envoys for peace talks, in Russia in “the coming weeks.”
Indeed, even as Mr. Xi deepens ties with Mr. Putin, he has invested heavily in courting Mr. Trump, whose tariffs, technology restrictions and support for Taiwan can hurt Beijing’s interests. The Chinese reception of both Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin reflected the balancing act Mr. Xi is striking.
Mr. Putin’s red carpet welcome was similar to Mr. Trump’s, featuring an honor guard inspection, a 21-gun salute and a group of cheering children.
While Mr. Trump had been greeted at the airport by Han Zheng, China’s vice president, Mr. Putin was met by China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi. Yun Sun, director of the China program at the Stimson Center in Washington, said that in her view, Mr. Han was the more senior official, but Mr. Wang played a more active role in foreign policy.
During last week’s summit with Mr. Trump, Mr. Xi was friendly, despite the frequent tensions between the United States and China. Mr. Xi took Mr. Trump inside the secretive Chinese leadership compound in Beijing known as Zhongnanhai on Friday, and seemed to signal that he was being granted rare access.
Mr. Trump asked Mr. Xi if he had hosted other world leaders there.
“Very rarely,” Mr. Xi said. “For example, Putin has been here.”
Paul Sonne contributed reporting from Berlin, Valerie Hopkins from Moscow, and Berry Wang from Hong Kong.
