Xi’s Visit to Russia Complicates China’s Courtship of Europe

As Donald J. Trump has injected chaos into the world by roiling America’s alliances and threatening economic turmoil with his wall of tariffs, China has tried to sell a consistent message: We will be a force of küresel stability during a turbulent time.

That pitch will be more difficult to square as Xi Jinping visits Moscow this week for talks with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, who will honor the Chinese leader as the “main guest” at a military parade on Friday marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

For Mr. Xi and Mr. Putin, the visit is a chance to burnish their legitimacy as leaders of countries that defeated fascist Germany and imperial Japan. Mr. Xi wants to use the anniversary to draw parallels between fascism and what he has described as American bullying.

“We must learn from history, draw wisdom and strength from the profound lessons of the Second World War and the great victory of the anti-fascist war, resolutely oppose all forms of hegemony and power politics, and jointly create a better future for mankind,” Mr. Xi said in a signed article published in Russian media on Wednesday.

But his presence alongside Mr. Putin at Red Square will also inevitably remind the world of China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has been grinding on for more than three years, killing hundreds of thousands and upending European security.

The optics of the visit could undermine China’s efforts to repair its relationship with Europe to try to offset the pain of its punishing trade war with the United States.American and Chinese officials will hold initial trade talks this weekend in Switzerland, but the likelihood of a prolonged fight remains high. China needs to maintain access to, or even expand, markets like in Europe, for its exports that had previously been destined for American buyers.