0652GMT//Xi , Putin and Kim meet for first time; Slovakian PM meets with Putin; Germany launches campaign to stop Russia recruiting low grade saboteurs
XI, KIM AND PUTIN: Chinese Pres. Xi Jinping hosted Vladimir Putin, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un and several other leaders at a massive military parade in central Beijing. Video showed Xi, flanked by Putin and Kim, leading the courtege into a stand to watch the parade. (COMMENT: This was a remarkable piece of geo-political theatre. Here were Xi, Putin and Kim meeting for the first time, striding confidently to watch a massive display of Chinese military might roll through central Beijing.)
PUTIN-KIM TALKS: Putin began talks with Kim on Wednesday morning after watching the Chinese military parade. At the start of the talks, Putin said that Russia-North Korea relations were "special". (COMMENT: This is the first time in two years that Putin and Kim have met personally. Since then, Kim has not only sent millions of artillery shells and thousands of missiles to Russia but also soldiers and labourers. Alongside Xi, Kim has become Putin's most important ally. They have a chummy "bromance" style friendship, backslapping one another, sharing jokes and travelling together to the talks in Beijing in a Russia-made limousine.)
FICO LAUDS PUTIN: Putin met with Robert Fico, PM of EU member Slovakia, in Beijing on Tuesday, the day before watching the Chinese military parade. During their conversation, Fico compared the EU to a "toad" sitting at the bottom of a well. (COMMENT: Fico appears to be more pro-Putin than even Hungarian leader Viktor Orban. In May, he travelled to Moscow for the Kremlin's annual military parade, and here he was once again popping up in Beijing to chat with Putin. This, of course, plays to Putin's strategy of dividing Europe. During the talks with Fico, he, of course, damned Fico and Slovakia with feint praise.)
CHINESE GAS DEAL DISAPPOINTMENT: Shares in Russia's Gazprom fell more than 3% on the Moscow Stock Exchange on Tuesday after the company signed a memorandum of intent towards building the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline to China, rather than an actual contract. (COMMENT: Analysts and investors said they were disappointed that China and Russia hadn't signed a full contract to build the pipeline – seen as an urgent project for Russian gas sales since the invasion of Ukraine. The 2,600km Power of Siberia 2 is an expensive project, expected to cost $25 billion, and there are several sticking points – China won't commit to funding the project and also wants gas at a heavily discounted price.)
CHINA ABOLISHES VISAS: China will abolish visas for Russians from mid-September. The scheme will run for one year and could be extended if it is considered a success. (COMMENT: This is all part of the general "love-in" between Russia and China.)
NEWS CAR SALES FALL: Sales of new cars in Russia were 18% lower in August compared to the same period in 2024. (COMMENT: This is more economic data showing the sharp decline of the Russian economy.)
ARMY OFFICER ACCUSED OF WAR CRIMES IS PROMOTED: A former Russian army lieutenant accused of war crimes by Ukraine has been promoted to minister of religious affairs in Dagestan, a region of southern Russia. Temirlan Abutalimov was given the Hero of Russia award by Putin in December 2023 for leading combat units in the Zaporizhia region, south Ukraine. Ukrainian officials have said that in May 2024, Abutalimov was involved in the murder of four Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered to his unit. (COMMENT: Abutalimov's promotion to minister in Dagestan is another example of how the Kremlin is promoting Ukraine war veterans. He was part of the Kremlin's 'Time of Heroes' programme, a core component of the militarisation of Russia. These veterans are being pushed through the ranks of Russia's bureaucracy and business and turned into a new elite.)
NORTH KOREA'S DEATH TOLL IN KURSK RISES: South Korea's intelligence agency has now estimated that 2,000 North Korean soldiers died in Russia's Kursk region between December and March fighting Ukrainian forces. It also said that North Korea is sending another 6,000 soldiers to Russia to help rebuild the Kursk region -- occupied by Ukraine from August until around March. (COMMENT: Previous estimates had put the number of North Korean soldiers' deaths at around 600, with several thousand injured. This assessment is considerably higher. This appears to be the third wave of soldiers sent to Russia to work as labourers rebuilding the Kursk region.)
HUNTING FOR RUSSIAN AGENTS IN GERMANY: Germany has launched an advertisement campaign to stop Russia recruiting "disposable agents" via social media. Russia has stepped up recruitment of disaffected and bored young people in Europe to carry out low-grade sabotage attacks. (COMMENT: This high-profile campaign in Germany shows just how worried Europe is about this new Russian "hybrid warfare" strategy.)