Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Beijing to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the China-Russia friendship treaty. During the visit, Putin held talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, with the long-stalled Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline topping the agenda.
However, the discussions failed to make progress, and Putin left Beijing without securing the firm commitment he had hoped for. There was no sign of a breakthrough on the project, which is intended to carry gas from northwestern Russia to China.
The planned Power of Siberia 2 system is a 1,615 mile pipeline designed to transport 50 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas annually to China through Mongolia. Russia has been trying for years to reach a deal on this link, which would more than double its current gas exports to China.
The project is considered to have the potential to reshape global energy flows and geopolitics.