China is unlikely to return territories leased from Russia — economist Us

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"The story of Russian gas and China is not new. China continues to buy gas from Russia. They buy it through the Power of Siberia-1 pipeline. Six months ago, the Russians offered to build a second pipeline. The Chinese replied that they would not mind if the Russians built it at their own expense. Beijing also said that they might not even buy gas through the newly constructed line. After all, they remember the history of the EU and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline very well," Us explained.

The economist is convinced that China will not return the leased land to Russia.

"In Russia, they are very happy about Putin's visit to China. He hasn't traveled anywhere recently. For Russia, this is more of a demonstration visit. But for China, it is an opportunity to slowly absorb Russian territory. Indeed, the Chinese are not seizing it, but simply renting it. However, they are unlikely to return it later," he added.

• On Tuesday, October 17, Putin arrived in Beijing. He participated in the Belt and Road forum. There, the Russian president took part in an official meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan.

• The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine stated that the Russian president's visit to China could pose certain risks to Ukraine. However, Ukrainian intelligence is closely monitoring the situation.