Putin Heads to Beijing as Russia and China Tighten Their Alignment

Vladimir Putin will travel to China on May 19 and 20 for an official visit that underscores how central Beijing has become to Moscow’s economic and diplomatic strategy.

According to the Kremlin, Putin and Xi Jinping plan to “further strengthen the comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation” between their two countries.

During the trip, Putin is also scheduled to meet Li Qiang to discuss trade and economic cooperation.

Russia’s state-run TASS news agency said the visit coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, the 2001 agreement that laid the groundwork for the modern Moscow-Beijing relationship.

The announcement comes just one day after Donald Trump left Beijing following his first visit to China in nearly a decade.

Trump and Xi emerged from their summit touting broad trade agreements, but public progress appeared limited on the most sensitive issues, including Taiwan and the US-Israel war on Iran.

The two leaders also touched on the war in Ukraine, where China has tried to present itself as a neutral actor and potential mediator.

That position has always been complicated by Beijing’s increasingly close ties with Moscow.

Trump briefly referred to the Ukraine war during his own visit to China.

“We discussed – well, it’s one that we’d like to see settled,” he said in remarks reported by the Kyiv Post.

As US-China relations remain marked by disputes over trade, Taiwan and global security, ties between Beijing and Moscow have moved in the opposite direction.

China is now Russia’s largest trading partner by a wide margin. Since Western sanctions and corporate withdrawals reshaped Russia’s economy, Beijing has become a critical buyer of Russian oil and a major supplier of goods and industrial inputs.

Putin highlighted that shift during a visit to China last August, when he criticised “discriminatory” Western sanctions and praised Beijing’s role in sustaining economic cooperation. He noted that most transactions between the two countries are now conducted in Russian roubles and Chinese yuan.

The relationship has continued to deepen this year. Last month, Xi told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that China and Russia should pursue “closer and stronger strategic coordination”.

Xi also visited Russia in May last year and pledged to stand with Moscow against “unilateralism and hegemonic bullying”.