Russian leader Vladimir Putin will pay a one-day visit to Beijing, just days after President Xi Jinping wraps up his closely watched summit with his American counterpart Donald Trump.
Sources told the South China Morning Post that the visit is expected to take place later next week, on May 20. They also said the visit was part of Moscow’s routine dealings with Beijing, with little expectation that there would be an elaborate parade or welcome.
It will be the first time that China has hosted the leaders of the two powers in the same month outside a multilateral setting, a reflection of Beijing’s efforts to manage ties with both and position itself as a pivotal power amid an increasingly fractured world order.
Advertisement
After Putin’s visit, China will also be the first country to host all four leaders of the other permanent members of the UN State Council within months of each other. France’s Emmanuel Macron visited Beijing in December followed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in January.
Trump wraps up his visit to China on Friday – the first by a US leader in nearly a decade – after his trip was postponed by several weeks because of the war in Iran. Beijing rolled out the red carpet, with an elaborate welcome that included dozens of cheering schoolchildren and a 21-gun salute.
Advertisement
Sources said Putin’s visit would not be likely to feature that scale of pomp, as Chinese officials had been busy with the Trump trip.