Putin visits China to reaffirm Russia ties as Xi also seeks stable US relations after Trump summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping greet each other in Tianjin, China, on Aug. 31, 2025. (Sergei Bobylev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

2026-05-19T01:02:04Z

BEIJING (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin is traveling 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 on Tuesday and Wednesday in 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, but also “key international and regional issues.” The visit coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Friendship signed in 2001.

Putin said in a video address released before his visit that bilateral ties are at “a truly unprecedented level” and the relationship plays an important role globally, China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported Tuesday.

There is “no connection” between Trump’s visit to China and Putin’s, presidential aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters Monday, noting the trip by the Russian leader was agreed in advance, several days after Putin and Xi spoke via videoconference on Feb. 4.

“The Trump visit was about stabilizing the world’s most important bilateral relationship; the Putin visit is about reassuring a long-standing strategic partner,” said Wang Zichen, deputy secretary-general for the Beijing-based think tank Center for China & Globalization. “For China, these two tracks are not mutually exclusive.”

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Putin and Xi call each other ‘friend’

Putin last visited China in September 2025 to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Tianjin, watch a military parade honoring the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and hold talks with Xi.

At the time, Xi called his counterpart an “old friend ” while Putin addressed Xi as “dear friend.” In China, “old friend” is a very rare diplomatic term used by the government and party to describe favored foreign people.

In April, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Beijing and met Xi, who described the bilateral relationship as “precious” in the current international context. Xi said China and Russia needed to use a stronger strategic collaboration to defend their legitimate, shared interests and safeguard the unity of Global South countries.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said over the weekend that Putin’s trip also would allow Russia to receive direct updates and exchange views with China concerning its talks with the U.S.

During Trump’s visit, Xi described the bilateral relationship between the U.S. and China as the world’s most important and said they should see each other as partners rather than rivals. By the end of the two-day summit, the countries said they would work on a new framework to manage “a constructive China-U.S. relationship of strategic stability.”

Wang of the center for China & Globalization observed, “Beijing wants stable relations with the West, continued strategic trust with Moscow, and enough diplomatic room to present itself as an unbiased major power capable of talking to all sides.”

China is Russia’s primary trade partner

For some, Putin’s visit is meant to reinforce the partnership between Russia and China that has strengthened in recent years, in particular after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. China has said it is neutral in the Ukraine conflict while maintaining Russian trade ties despite economic and financial sanctions by the U.S. and Europe.

China has become Russia’s top trading partner. Beijing is now the top customer for Russian oil and gas supplies and Moscow expects the war in Iran to increase the demand. China also has ignored demands from the West to stop providing high-tech components for Russia’s weapons industries.

Ushakov, the Russian presidential aide, said Russia’s oil exports to China grew by 35% in the first quarter of 2026 and that Russia is one of the biggest exporters of natural gas to China.

During “the crisis in the Middle East,” Russia remains a reliable energy supplier and China is a “responsible consumer,” Ushakov said.

Putin noted earlier this month that Moscow and Beijing have reached “a very substantial step forward in our cooperation in the oil and gas sector.”

“Practically all the key issues have been agreed upon,” the Russian leader said. “If we succeed in finalizing these details and bringing them to a conclusion during this visit, I will be extremely pleased.”

Putin also hailed their bilateral relationship as a crucial, balancing force in international relations.

“Interaction between such nations as China and Russia undoubtedly serves as a factor of deterrence and stability,” he said.

Moscow welcomes China’s dialogue with the U.S. as another stabilizing element for the global economy, Putin added.

“We stand only to benefit from this, from the stability and constructive engagement between the U.S. and China,” he said.

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