New Delhi, May 28 -- The Putin-Xi meeting in Beijing, held against the backdrop of Donald Trump's recent China visit, was carefully choreographed geopolitical theatre. It sought to convey that China can engage Washington without yielding strategic ground, while projecting the image that the centre of global power is increasingly shifting eastward.

For President Vladimir Putin, the optics were equally important. Russia wanted to demonstrate that it remains strategically resilient despite sanctions, battlefield pressures and long-term economic isolation from the West. Together, both leaders attempted to reinforce the narrative of a growing partnership shaping a post-Western order.

Yet the deeper reality is far more complex. The relationsh...