TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday (Nov. 7) accused Taiwan of provoking tensions with China.

At a policy forum in Sochi, Putin congratulated Donald Trump on his election win and praised him for behaving "courageously, like a real man" after the July assassination attempt, per Al Jazeera. He claimed the level of mutual trust between Russia and China is at an all-time high and reiterated support for Moscow's "one China" policy, per Beijing's state-run CGTN. 

Referring to the Taiwan Strait, Putin said, "We do not believe that China is pursuing an aggressive policy in the region," reported Reuters. He also hinted that Taiwan is attempting to incite a crisis similar to that in Ukraine to lure international backing.

He remarked, "A lot is going on around Taiwan. Everyone formally acknowledges, yes, Taiwan is part of China. But in reality? In reality, it is acting in a completely different direction. Provoking the situation towards escalation."

Putin continued, “We do support China. And because of this, we believe that (China) is conducting a completely reasonable policy.” Pointing to Sino-Russian military cooperation, Putin added, "And also because it is our ally. We have a very large trade turnover, we cooperate in the security sector."

Putin paralleled the bilateral military exercises between Russia and China with those between the US and Japan, saying, “These exercises do not threaten anyone.” He added the drills are "aimed at ensuring our security.”