Russia clinches major new gas pipeline deal with China as West shuns supplies

Russia and China on Tuesday signed a legally binding deal to build the long-delayed Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline, deepening commercial ties in what is likely to be seen as a defiant signal to the West.

Alexei Miller, the chief executive of Russia’s state-owned energy giant Gazprom, told Russian news agencies that a memorandum of understanding had been signed on the construction of the new gas pipeline, following talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping in Beijing.