Russia-China

Research and Insights

Workers labor at the construction site of the China-Russia east route natural gas pipeline in Hai'an in eastern China's Jiangsu province Saturday, March 12, 2022.

Russia-China

Power of Siberia 2: A litmus test of Sino-Russian relations

Henrik Wachtmeister

Comment

Sep 05, 2025

ussian President Vladimir Putin, left, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, centre, and Chinese President Xi Jinping talk ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit

China’s meeting with India and Russia was about more than Trump

Manoj Kewalramani

Comment

Sep 04, 2025

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization as a vehicle to promote narratives of China and Russia, with Claus Soong

Podcast

Aug 29, 2025

Heads of State stand for the group photo at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit, July 4, 2024, in Astana, Kazakhstan.

China and Russia are using the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to push alternative global order

Claus Soong

Comment

Jul 31, 2025

“China in 25”: US-China trade deal and Xi’s visit to Moscow

Podcast

May 13, 2025

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, welcomes Chinese President Xi Jinping, for the 16th BRICS summit at the Kazan Kremlin

China-Russia alignment – a shared vision, without fully seeing eye to eye

Claus Soong

Comment

May 07, 2025

Shipping containers are being loaded onto container ships in the Vladivostok Sea Commercial Port.

China-Russia trade: asymmetrical, yet indispensable 

Filip Rudnik

Comment

May 07, 2025

Gulf Of Oman, Indian Ocean, Iran: Navy ships engage in military exercises during joint drills conducted by Iran, Russia, and China in the Gulf of Oman.

Joint military exercises signal deepening Russia-China strategic alignment

Hugo von Essen

Comment

May 07, 2025

China on peace in Ukraine: What to expect based on the track record of Beijing’s narratives (EU vs DisiNFO)

Eva Seiwert

Grzegorz Stec

External publication

Mar 03, 2025

US-Russia thaw + US-China investments + Beijing woos the private sector

MERICS China Essentials

Feb 27, 2025

Reconstruction of Ukraine: What China can do (Handelsblatt)

Helena Legarda

Abigaël Vasselier

External publication

Feb 26, 2025

China and Europe's security (Tagesschau.de)

Abigaël Vasselier

External publication

Nov 22, 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Chinese Vice President Han Zheng at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia on September 4, 2024

China signals its willingness to play a proactive role in Russia-Ukraine relations, if conditions are suitable

Helena Legarda

Eva Seiwert

Claus Soong

Abigaël Vasselier

China Security and Risk Tracker

Oct 09, 2024

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Foreign Ministers meeting

The SCO faces rewards and risks as it admits Belarus

Eva Seiwert

Comment

Jul 02, 2024

Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin review the honor guard during an official welcome ceremony in Beijing, China, Thursday, May 16, 2024.

China-Russia alignment: a threat to Europe's security

Natalie Sabanadze

Abigaël Vasselier

Gunnar Wiegand

Report

Jun 26, 2024

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in Beijing, May 2024

Takeaways from the Xi-Putin meeting + Manufacturing overcapacity + Agrifood trade

François Chimits

Eva Seiwert

Grzegorz Stec

MERICS Europe China 360°

May 24, 2024

Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin in Beijing, May 2024

It’s time for the EU to get tough on China for supporting Russia’s war on Ukraine

Eva Seiwert

Comment

May 22, 2024

Beijing stands firmly by Moscow's side (Deutschlandfunk)

Mikko Huotari

External publication

Mar 21, 2023

Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin talk to each other during their meeting in Beijing, China, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022.

Keeping up appearances? China’s support for Russia one year into the war

Mikko Huotari

Roderick Kefferpütz

Comment

Mar 01, 2023

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, right, and the Chinese Communist Party's foreign policy chief Wang Yi enter a hall for their talks in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023.

The peace plan that wasn’t

Helena Legarda

Comment

Feb 28, 2023

Ukraine one year on, with Helena Legarda and Jakub Jakóbowski

Podcast

Feb 24, 2023

picture alliance / ASSOCIATED PRESS | Anton Novoderezhkin

MERICS EU-China Opinion Pool: The Russia factor in EU-China relations in 2023

Comment

Feb 24, 2023

China-Ukraine relations, with Yurii Poita

Podcast

Jan 03, 2023

Pekín no abandonará a Moscú (El País)

Helena Legarda

External publication

Nov 02, 2022

Chinese and Russian national flags flutter on lampposts in front of the Tian'anmen Rostrum

EU-China Opinion Pool: Key lessons for the EU from China’s position on the Ukraine war

Comment

Sep 29, 2022

Chinese and Russian national flags flutter on a lamppost in front of the Tian'anmen Rostrum

Not all sunshine and roses - how Russian experts view China

Roderick Kefferpütz

Yurii Poita

Comment

Sep 15, 2022

Large machinery loads containers at the China-Kazakhstan (Lianyungang) Logistics Cooperation base in Lianyungang, East China's Jiangsu province, Aug 18, 2022.

China moves to fill the void left by Russian sanctions – on its own terms

François Chimits

Antonia Hmaidi

Comment

Aug 26, 2022

Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol, from left, pose for media in a group photo of Indo-Pacific partners nations during the NATO summit in Madrid, Spain, on Wednesday, June 29, 2022.

China and Russia bring NATO and the Indo-Pacific together

Helena Legarda

Comment

Jul 26, 2022

Experts on Russia-China

Helena Legarda

Head of Program

China’s defense and security policies; Chinese foreign policy, geopolitical competition and risk

Eva Seiwert

Senior Analyst/Project coordinator (on parental leave)

China’s foreign and security policy; China and Russia; Indo-Pacific; Germany-China; Multilateralism; China and Central Asia

Grzegorz Stec

Head of Brussels Office/Senior Analyst

EU-China; China’s foreign policy & geopolitical competition; hybrid interference & disinformation

Russia-China

Research and Insights

Power of Siberia 2: A litmus test of Sino-Russian relations

China’s meeting with India and Russia was about more than Trump

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization as a vehicle to promote narratives of China and Russia, with Claus Soong

China and Russia are using the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to push alternative global order

“China in 25”: US-China trade deal and Xi’s visit to Moscow

China-Russia alignment – a shared vision, without fully seeing eye to eye

China-Russia trade: asymmetrical, yet indispensable

Joint military exercises signal deepening Russia-China strategic alignment

China on peace in Ukraine: What to expect based on the track record of Beijing’s narratives (EU vs DisiNFO)

US-Russia thaw + US-China investments + Beijing woos the private sector

Reconstruction of Ukraine: What China can do (Handelsblatt)

China and Europe's security (Tagesschau.de)

China signals its willingness to play a proactive role in Russia-Ukraine relations, if conditions are suitable

The SCO faces rewards and risks as it admits Belarus

China-Russia alignment: a threat to Europe's security

Takeaways from the Xi-Putin meeting + Manufacturing overcapacity + Agrifood trade

It’s time for the EU to get tough on China for supporting Russia’s war on Ukraine

Beijing stands firmly by Moscow's side (Deutschlandfunk)

Keeping up appearances? China’s support for Russia one year into the war

The peace plan that wasn’t

Ukraine one year on, with Helena Legarda and Jakub Jakóbowski

MERICS EU-China Opinion Pool: The Russia factor in EU-China relations in 2023

China-Ukraine relations, with Yurii Poita

Pekín no abandonará a Moscú (El País)

EU-China Opinion Pool: Key lessons for the EU from China’s position on the Ukraine war

Not all sunshine and roses - how Russian experts view China

China moves to fill the void left by Russian sanctions – on its own terms

China and Russia bring NATO and the Indo-Pacific together

Experts on Russia-China

Helena Legarda

Eva Seiwert

Grzegorz Stec

Become a member

EV tariffs + EU-China policy at an inflection point + Exports to China