Despite prior assurances of neutrality over Ukraine, Beijing has committed to deepening its ties with Moscow. This was confirmed during a meeting between Chinese Defence Minister Gen. Li Shangfu and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Li stated that his visit to Russia was specifically designed to emphasize the strategic importance of bilateral ties, while Putin argued that military cooperation between the two countries was rapidly progressing across all areas. These developments follow Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Moscow. The increasing diplomatic relations between Beijing and Moscow also coincided with news that Beijing had been secretly sending weapons shipments to support the Russian military. Although the US intelligence community has leaked information concerning this development, neither the Department of Defence nor the Office of the Director of National Intelligence has commented or verified the claims. The Biden Administration, in particular, claims that Beijing is not impartial in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, and that its proposed ceasefire agreement with Russia was designed to buy Moscow more time. Finally, Russia appears to be in a historically weak position vis-à -vis China, with the country behaving like a vassal state.