BEIJING (Reuters), Xi Jinping, the Chinese President, met with representatives of Kazakhstan, Egypt and Kazakhstan on Saturday. Beijing used the Winter Olympics’ opening ceremony to take control of diplomatic relations with the United States.

Xi met with Russia after a landmark agreement on Friday. This was ahead of a Lunar New Year themed banquet in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People Saturday.

It was the first time that the Chinese president had been invited to join a group of leaders of states since late 2019, just before COVID-19.

Xi shared his gratitude with fellow leaders by toasting them.

In a speech, Xi stated that China had made all efforts to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus epidemic and has fulfilled its solemn obligations to the international community. He also assured that the Beijing Winter Olympics will be held on schedule.

More than 30 foreign leaders arrived in Beijing for the opening ceremonies of the 2022 Winter Olympics. However, the United States of America and other Western nations have boycotted the event due to rising geopolitical tensions as well as claims of abuses of human rights in the region of Xinjiang.

The ruling Communist Party’s People’s Daily runs the Global Times. They rebuffed foreign media reporting that only “authoritarian” people attended the event. In an editorial, they accused them of using “outdated anti China cliches.”

Xi met with President Kassym-Jomart Tkayev of Kazakhstan, President Aleksandar Vucic from Serbia, and President Abdel Fatta Al-Sisi (Egypt) on Saturday morning to discuss Belt and Road-related infrastructure investment and cooperating in fighting COVID-19.

Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov of Turkmenistan also stated that both sides need to strengthen their cooperation with China.

In a joint statement, Xi and Vladimir Putin stated Moscow’s opposition to Taiwanese independence. China, however, supported Russia’s opposition to NATO expansion.

Russia is trying to force Ukraine into NATO membership by deploying 100,000 soldiers near the border with Ukraine.

Kevin Rudd was the former Prime Minister of Australia and the president of Asia Society. He called the combined statement “highly significant”.

Rudd said that this was the “first time since the SinoSoviet separation that China has taken a definitive stance on European security to support Russia in something as fundamentally as NATO.”

Taiwan, however, said that the timing of this agreement was “contemptible” and claimed that the Chinese government had brought shame on the spirit of these Games.