Putin thanks China’s Xi for his ‘balanced’ stand on Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday for his “balanced” approach to the Ukrainian crisis and blasted Washington’s “ugly” policies at a meeting that followed a major setback for Moscow on the battlefield.

Speaking at the start of talks with Xi in Uzbekistan, Putin said he was ready to discuss unspecified “concerns” by China about Ukraine.

“We highly appreciate the well-balanced position of our Chinese friends in connection with the Ukrainian crisis,” Putin said, facing Xi across a long table.

“We understand your questions and your concerns in this regard, and we certainly will offer a detailed explanation of our stand on this issue during today’s meeting, even though we already talked about it earlier,” he added.

The two met on the sidelines of the eight-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organization that includes India, Pakistan and four ex-Soviet nations in Central Asia. The security alliance was created as a counterweight to U.S. influence.