Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to Beijing on May 19 and 20 for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a visit that is expected to reinforce the increasingly close relationship between Moscow and Beijing.
The trip was announced by both governments on Saturday and comes shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump met Xi in the Chinese capital. That sequence of high-level meetings places Beijing at the centre of renewed diplomacy involving three of the world’s most powerful states, with trade, energy security, the war in Ukraine, and wider geopolitical competition all likely to shape the backdrop.
Moscow said the visit is linked to a milestone in the relationship between Russia and China. “The Russian President’s visit is timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the Treaty of Good-Neighbourliness and Friendly Cooperation, which serves as the basis for interstate relations,” Putin’s office said in a statement.
The agreement, signed in 2001 and later extended, has provided a formal basis for cooperation between the two neighbours. In the years since, their ties have grown across diplomacy, defence, trade, and energy, with that alignment becoming more important for Russia after Western sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine.
The Kremlin said Putin and Xi “will discuss current bilateral matters, ways to further strengthen the comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China, and exchange views on key international and regional matters.”
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the planned meeting in a brief post on X, but did not immediately release further details.
Energy is expected to be a major part of the wider agenda. Russia is one of the world’s leading oil and gas producers, while China remains one of the largest buyers of fossil fuels. As European countries have reduced their reliance on Russian energy, Moscow has increasingly looked to Asian markets to support export revenues, with China emerging as one of its most important customers.
The meeting will be closely watched in Washington and European capitals, particularly because it follows Trump’s discussions with Xi. For Beijing, the back-to-back visits may offer another opportunity to present itself as a central diplomatic player while maintaining close ties with Moscow and managing its complex relationship with the United States.