Summary The visit comes as Beijing attempts to balance stable relations with the United States while maintaining its close strategic partnership with Moscow
(Reuters/Web Desk) – Russian President Vladimir Putin will be in China on Tuesday and Wednesday for high-level talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, just days after US President Donald Trump concluded his own visit to Beijing.
Putin-Xi meetings are expected to focus on expanding economic cooperation and discussing major international and regional developments. The visit comes as Beijing attempts to balance stable relations with the United States while maintaining its close strategic partnership with Moscow.
According to the Kremlin, the two leaders will also mark the 25th anniversary of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Friendship signed in 2001, a cornerstone agreement that has shaped ties between the neighbouring powers over the past quarter century.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced on Thursday that President Putin will visit China very soon and preparations for the trip are already complete.
Putin and Xi have met more than 40 times over the years, most recently in Beijing last September.
The two men signed a "no limits" strategic partnership in February 2022, less than three weeks before Russia went to war in Ukraine.
Analysts say the timing of Putin’s visit carries strong diplomatic significance following Trump’s summit with Xi. Wang Zichen, deputy secretary-general of the Beijing-based Center for China & Globalisation, said Trump’s trip centered on stabilizing US-China relations, while Putin’s visit is intended to reassure one of Beijing’s closest strategic partners.
“The Trump visit was about stabilising the world’s most important bilateral relationship; the Putin visit is about reassuring a long-standing strategic partner,” Wang said, adding that China does not view the two diplomatic tracks as conflicting.
Putin and Xi have continued to publicly emphasize their personal rapport and close political ties. During Putin’s previous trip to China in September 2025 for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin, Xi referred to the Russian leader as an “old friend,” while Putin called Xi his “dear friend.”
Earlier this year, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also visited Beijing, where Xi described relations between China and Russia as “precious” amid growing geopolitical tensions. The Chinese leader stressed the need for stronger strategic coordination to protect shared interests and support unity among Global South nations.
Kremlin spokesman Peskov said Putin’s upcoming meetings would also provide an opportunity for Moscow to receive updates from Beijing regarding recent talks between China and the United States.
During Trump’s recent visit, Xi described US-China relations as the world’s most important bilateral relationship and said both sides should treat each other as partners rather than rivals. The two countries later announced plans to pursue a new framework aimed at maintaining what they called “a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability.”
Despite Beijing’s outreach to Washington, China’s partnership with Russia has deepened significantly since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. While China has publicly maintained neutrality over the conflict, it has continued strong trade and energy cooperation with Russia despite Western sanctions.
China remains Russia’s largest trading partner and the biggest buyer of Russian oil and gas. Moscow also expects rising tensions in Iran and the broader Middle East to further increase demand for Russian energy exports.
Western governments have repeatedly criticised Beijing for continuing to supply high-tech components that support Russia’s defense sector, accusations China has denied.
Putin recently praised progress in bilateral energy cooperation, saying Moscow and Beijing had made major advances in oil and gas agreements.
“Practically all the key issues have been agreed upon,” Putin said ahead of the visit. “If we succeed in finalizing these details and bringing them to a conclusion during this visit, I will be extremely pleased.”
The Russian president also described China-Russia cooperation as an important source of global stability and deterrence in an increasingly divided international environment.
At the same time, Putin welcomed improving dialogue between Beijing and Washington, saying stable and constructive engagement between the United States and China would benefit the global economy and international stability.
