This week, Chinese leader Xi Jinping visited Russia and offered support to the country's ailing leader, Vladimir Putin. While no military support was extended, the move suggests that Russia is turning to China for more than energy in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine. Despite Western sanctions, China's economic sway over and dominance in central Asia and the Russian far east continues to grow, with its hard power in technology dwarfing Russia's. Xi's emerging role as the leader of a Eurasian bloc is worth noting, as Russia falls increasingly under Chinese sway in the absence of an unlikely leadership change. Xi's rescue strategy for Russia seems to center on a peace plan, but it is unclear if he will extend the same support if Ukraine rejects the suggested cease-fire proposal.