Having secured a mandate to extend his rule of Russia to three decades, Vladimir Putin is expected to travel to Beijing on Thursday on a state visit to meet Xi Jinping intended to shore up his most important international relationship. The two men toasted their "no-limits" friendship in February 2022 - meant as a counterweight to the global influence of the US. That partnership has increasingly come under pressure as the Biden administration sought to isolate Russia from its Chinese lifeline after the full-scale invasion in Ukraine, which began later the same month. But as the Biden administration unveiled tariffs…
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