Russian President Vladimir Putin is travelling to China to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping less than a week after U.S. President Donald Trump wrapped up his own trip to Beijing.
Putin is scheduled to be in China today and tomorrow on a visit likely to be closely watched as Beijing seeks to maintain stable relations with the United States while also preserving strong ties with Russia.
The Kremlin has said Putin and Xi plan to discuss economic cooperation between the two countries, including key international and regional issues. The visit coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Friendship signed in 2001.
President Putin’s visit was announced just a day after United States President Donald Trump’s departure from China following the American leader’s summit with President Xi last week.
While Trump touted broad trade deals, there is little evidence that the US and China made significant progress on the most contentious issues dividing Washington and Beijing, including Taiwan and the US-Israel war on Iran.