China-Russia relations in the age of the Belt and Road Initiative: Mutual adaptation to asymmetry

Abstract

This article analyses China-Russia relations since the launch of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) regarding bilateral relations and the coordination of the BRI and the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) led by Russia. This study draws three main conclusions. First, both Chinese and Russian leadership have made efforts to advance the relationship between their countries and to minimise the potential sources of conflict, which has led to real progress in the strategic association reaching not only bilateral but also regional cooperation. Second, there is still a strong imbalance between the actual content of the agreements and the rhetoric employed, particularly in Russia, to project this relationship. Third, a growing asymmetry has not prevented the deepening of the strategic association. There has been a mutual adaptation to an asymmetric relationship. Russia has accepted that China determines the economic and commercial nature of the Eurasian integration, whereas China has adapted to Russian narratives and requirements to keep alive its role of political leadership in Eurasia.