Axis of Autocrats: Putin, Xi and Lukashenko

The president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko met with China’s leader Xi Jinping in Beijing this week. A staunch ally of Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko would have been eager to demonstrate his close relationship with another major world leader. For Beijing, however, the visit is a little more complicated.   Megan Gibson in London, Katie Stallard in Washington DC and Ido Vock in Berlin discuss the significance of the visit's timing, which follows China’s attempted charm offensive in Europe, and whether Belarus could send troops to Ukraine.   The team then turn to a flurry of drone strikes on Russia in recent days, with TV channels and radio stations also being hacked. They discuss whether Ukraine is behind these attacks and the potential political consequences.   Then in You Ask Us a listener asks what French president Emmanuel Macron is trying to achieve in Africa.

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Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more   Read more:   Ido writes there are cracks between how Ukraine and the West see the war ending   Katie on why Alexander Lukashenko’s visit to China matters   Katie on China’s hollow peace plan for Ukraine

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