Russian President Vladimir Putin met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 20 for talks centered on deepening energy ties and presenting a united front against what both leaders cast as a Western-dominated global order.Speaking at the start of meetings at the Great Hall of the People, Xi said China and Russia should continue to support each other’s “development and revitalization,” while Putin described bilateral ties as being at an “unprecedented level” and said Russia remained a “reliable energy supplier” amid the war in Iran and closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has affected global flows and prices for oil and gas.The summit comes as Russia seeks to lock in new long-term energy deals with China, including progress on the long-delayed Power of Siberia-2 gas pipeline, a project Moscow sees as crucial to replacing lost European gas markets after the invasion of Ukraine.“So far, China has been dragging its feet, but that could change at this meeting,” Henrik Wachtmeister, a researcher at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs’ China center, told RFE/RL.Xi, Putin Expected To Sign 21 New AgreementsThe war in Iran and the disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz have added urgency to those talks by raising fears in Beijing over energy security and renewed volatility in global oil markets.Analysts say the crisis has sharpened Moscow’s pitch that overland Russian energy supplies can help China reduce its dependence on vulnerable maritime routes, even as Beijing remains cautious about becoming too reliant on Russia.