How Putin and Xi both bent their nations to their will to become presidents for life

Tue, 03/19/2024 - 07:04

Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin toasting wine glasses while making eye contact. — Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, the leaders of China and Russia, at a reception in Moscow in March of last year.
PAVEL BYRKIN/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping are drawing closer together in the wake of the Ukraine war.
They share old grudges about Western power and imperialistic ambitions.
They have followed strangely parallel paths, overcoming term limits to seize indefinite power.

When Vladimir Putin delivered his victory speech this week in Russia's election (widely condemned as meaningless), there was one man he singled out for praise: China's authoritarian leader, Xi Jinping.