U.S. Influence Targeted

President Boris Yeltsin of Russia and President Jiang Zemin of China pledged on Wednesday to work together to limit American power and influence in the world.

At the start of a summit meeting laden with political symbolism, the two leaders did not single out the United States by name. But their message, aimed in part at a Russian public that has been bombarded with alarmist reports about NATO expansion and the U.S. role as the sole remaining superpower, was clear. “No country should seek hegemony, practice power politics or monopolize international affairs,” said a Russian-Chinese statement on the need for a “multipolar world.”

Even without talk of NATO expansion, Russia and China have many reasons to cooperate, particularly over the short run. China has emerged as a lucrative market for Russian arms manufacturers whose factories no longer receive government orders. Indeed, trade between the two nations increased by 25 percent last year.