The attack on a government building in Kyiv, the first in three years of full-scale war, could signal the start of a new phase in Russia's war against Ukraine, a move dictator Vladimir Putin is believed to have made upon his return from Beijing.
This was reported by the British publication The Times.
According to the publication, after a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing, Putin's confidence could have increased sharply.
It is noted that the air attack on Kyiv, which hit a government building, "is among the largest since the beginning of the war." Fans of the "hard line" in Russia have long called for attacks on so-called "decision-making centers" in Ukraine.
The Times also writes that Beijing has become an important platform for diplomatic maneuvers by the Russian dictator. He declared "an unprecedentedly high level" of relations with China. At the parade in Beijing, Putin sat to the right of Xi Jinping, and next to them was North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. According to the newspaper, this was the first time since the Cold War that the leaders of these three countries had gathered together.
China, unlike North Korea, did not send its troops to war against Ukraine. At the same time, Beijing supported Moscow diplomatically and "avoids Western sanctions." In addition, last week the Kremlin announced a preliminary agreement with China on the construction of the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline.
Let us recall that the Russian Iskander missile that hit the Ukrainian government building contained more than 30 foreign parts, including American, British, Japanese and Swiss ones. The missile's warhead failed to detonate, probably as a result of its destruction.
Read also about how China is using Russia's dependence on its gas market to buy the resource at reduced prices, while the prospects for the construction of the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline remain uncertain.
And Anton Ganotsky, an expert at the ADASTRA analytical center, stated earlier that the visa-free regime for Russians with China was not only a gesture of political support for Moscow, but a signal of strengthening the strategic alliance between the two states.