In a joint statement following talks, Xi Jinping and Putin stated that the war in Ukraine could only be resolved by removing its “root causes”.
Such formulation clearly echoes key Russian propaganda messages used by the Kremlin to justify the launch of the full-scale war, including the threat of NATO expansion, discrimination against Russian-speaking people and the suppression of the Russian language, culture and media in Ukraine.
Worth noting that it is illegal in Russia to criticize the war, so saying you don’t support it is probably a good way to get yourself sent to the front lines in an infantry uniform. So, it’s difficult to gauge how many people actually genuinely support it or not.