The state visit to China this week by Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Beijing, has underscored a developing strategic partnership between China and Russia.

Putin, who recently resumed the Russian presidency, snubbed last month’s G8 meeting in the US amid disagreements with American plans for a missile defence system in Europe. Instead, his initial visits have been to Germany and France, followed by China.

In Beijing, Russian and Chinese leaders publicly stated their opposition to the drive by the US and its allies towards military intervention in Syria. In a joint statement, Putin and Chinese President Hu Jintao declared: “Russia and China are decisively against attempts to regulate the Syrian crisis with outside military intervention, as well as imposing... a policy of regime change.”