Russia has publicly praised China for playing a leading role in reshaping global power structures and challenging what it calls outdated colonial and neocolonial systems.
Speaking on Monday, April 29, at a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during the BRICS Council gathering in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that current global dynamics demand a new kind of international system.
Lavrov referenced a Chinese proverb, “God forbid you should live in an era of change,” but added, “Today, China is one of the main drivers of global change, and perhaps such change is indeed necessary.”
He echoed Wang’s position that the world is seeing a struggle between nations trying to maintain a Western-led unipolar order and those pushing for a multipolar system, where no single country dominates international decision-making.
Lavrov stressed that the emerging world order should be built on sovereign equality, a principle outlined in the United Nations Charter. He also said that Russia, China, and their BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) partners are “at the forefront of the movement for justice and equality.”
“This imposes a special responsibility on us, especially in fulfilling the objectives set by the leaders of our countries,” Lavrov added.
He also confirmed that Russia is preparing for an official visit from Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is expected to attend commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory—a reference to the Soviet victory in World War II.
