When Xi goes to Moscow

What’s at stake as Xi Jinping visits Vladimir Putin in Moscow. [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( If two of the most powerful people on the planet are meeting, it’s because they each have something to gain. Xi Jinping is in Moscow today, his first overseas trip since getting the final rubber stamp on his third term as Chinese president. He’s seeing Vladimir Putin, whose war in Ukraine has made the Russian leader a pariah for nations from the US to Germany and Japan and the target of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes. Key reading: - [Xi’s Embrace of Putin Dents His Chances as Peacemaker on Ukraine]( - [China-Russia Gas Talks to Show How Much Xi Is Embracing Putin]( - [Xi Reboots Statesman Image in Bid to Counter US on World Stage]( - [Putin Faces War-Crime Warrant Issued by International Court]( - [EU Seeks to Send Ukraine 1 Million Artillery Shells Over a Year]( Xi’s trip only highlights Beijing’s renewed tensions with the US over everything from trade to security and defense to technology. It’s the ultimate riposte to the endless warnings from US officials for Xi to shun Putin, or avoid showing overt support for his war. It’ll be hard to miss the message of the two shaking hands and having warm chats, as trade between their countries continues to rise. And yet make no mistake, this is not because Xi thinks Putin’s war is a good thing. The relationship between China and Russia has long been transactional, based on common enemies and shared opportunities, with Beijing increasingly taking the upper hand. It suits Xi to poke the US in the eye. Equally he’s keen to portray himself as a statesman on the global stage and China as an alternate power base. His blueprint for talks on the war in Ukraine is likely a non-starter, but it doesn’t really matter to Xi. He’ll probably follow his face-to-face with Putin with a phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, showcasing himself as one of the few leaders able to speak with both men. For Putin, fresh off a weekend visit to annexed Crimea and the occupied Ukrainian city of Mariupol, having Xi in town is an instant win. He can tout it both at home and to other nations as evidence that breaking from the US orbit isn’t the end of the world. So this meeting suits both — for now at least. In the longer term, however, it’s clear who will be the one likely dictating the terms. — [Rosalind Mathieson]( Putin waves to local residents during his visit to Mariupol. Source: Russian TV Coming Soon: Understand power in Washington through the lens of business, government and the economy. [Sign up now for the new Bloomberg Washington Edition newsletter](, delivered Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. And if you are enjoying this newsletter, sign up [here](. Global Headlines Rallying call | Donald Trump’s claim that he expects to be arrested tomorrow as part of an investigation into hush-money payments to an adult film star is winning him support. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other Republicans quickly coalesced around the former president, while Tesla and Twitter Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said if Trump is apprehended and placed in handcuffs he will win “[a landslide victory](” in the 2024 election. French turmoil | President Emmanuel Macron’s government faces two [confidence]( motions as soon as today following his decision to force through a contentious pension reform without seeking a vote in parliament. While the motions are unlikely to pass, they’re a taste of the opposition to Macron’s agenda as demonstrations spiral and polls show his popularity at its lowest since the Yellow Vest protests of early 2019. Central banks in Africa’s biggest economies — Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco and Kenya — are poised to raise interest rates this month to contain sticky inflation and deter a selloff in their assets [exacerbated]( by the collapse of US lender Silicon Valley Bank and the forced takeover of Credit Suisse. Fall from grace | Once a stalwart of the global banking system, Credit Suisse Group is no more. A government-brokered sale to UBS Group ended a 166-year run as the bank that helped position Switzerland as a linchpin of [international finance]( before a steady drumbeat of scandals, legal issues and management upheaval undermined investor confidence. A message in chalk outside the Credit Suisse Group headquarters in Zurich. Photographer: Pascal Mora/Bloomberg Best of Bloomberg Opinion - [Xi Doesn’t Need Putin Summit to Pay Off Right Away: Minxin Pei]( - [The West Can’t Afford Hubris About Russia’s War: Max Hastings]( - [Europe’s Green Policy Will Weaken its Security: David Fickling]( Election boost | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan displayed new military jets to drum up support for his [reelection campaign]( in a show of force before a May vote that will test his two decades in power. The push to improve arms technology has been important to bolster his image at home but it has also pitched Turkey into uneasy new alliances and convulsed ties with NATO partners. Explainers you can use - [Behind the Banking Crisis, an Era of Easy Money’s End]( - [Why Turkey Is Still Blocking Sweden’s NATO Accession]( - [Big Wall Street Funds Cling Onto Emerging Markets in Bank Crisis]( Missile threat | North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a nuclear counterstrike drill involving a missile with a [mock atomic warhead]( capable of reaching Japan’s west coast, official media said. Kim issued a threat to the US over joint military drills it’s conducting with South Korea, saying he is preparing to make “an immediate and overwhelming nuclear counterattack any time.” Watch Bloomberg TV’s Balance of Power at 5pm to 6pm ET weekdays with Washington correspondents [Annmarie Hordern]( and [Joe Mathieu](. You can watch and listen on Bloomberg channels and online [here.]( News to Note - US President Joe Biden expressed [concern]( to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about a planned judicial overhaul that gives politicians power over the Supreme Court and appealed for compromise after Israelis staged mass protests. - Former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou said he plans to visit China this month in the first such visit by an ex-leader of the democratically governed island, as Taipei hosts foreign delegations in a sign of its [rising profile](. - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is expected to seek India’s assistance to forge a stronger coalition to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine at a meeting with his counterpart Narendra Modi today, adding [pressure]( on New Delhi to take a side in the rift between major world democracies and Moscow. - Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has been invited by Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz to visit Riyadh, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported, in the latest example of the fast [rapprochement]( between the Middle Eastern rivals. - Thailand’s parliament [was dissolved]( today ahead of elections tentatively slated for May as Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha seeks to extend his nearly decade-long military-backed rule. Congratulations to the 43 people who answered the Friday quiz and congratulations to Minta Phillips, who was the first to name Florida Governor Ron DeSantis as the US leader who criticized the Biden administration for providing a virtual “blank check” to Ukraine. And finally ... Pope John Paul II is credited with helping bring down communism and uniting people behind democracy in his native Poland. But as [Piotr Skolomowski]( and [Natalia Ojewska]( report, a documentary that raises questions about his [awareness]( of child abuse half a century ago has thrust him back into the center of politics and kicked off a culture war that may decide elections later this year. A portrait of Karol Wojtyla, later Pope John Paul II, in Krakow, Poland. Photographer: Beata ZawrzelNurPhoto/Getty Images Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Want to sponsor this newsletter? 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