Putin to Meet Xi Jinping in China: An Invitation from My Good Friend
Russian President Vladimir Putin is undertaking a two-day visit to China this week. He will meet directly with President Xi Jinping, who had recently held a similar meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, as cited by the TASS news agency on Tuesday (May 19, 2026), said Putin’s visit to Beijing on May 19-20 will be marked by an agenda that is highly intensive.
Putin will meet Xi in person, where the two will conduct Russia-China discussions in both a narrow and a wide format.
The Kremlin noted that the two leaders will jointly launch a cross-year education programme, and will also discuss the most pressing global issues “while enjoying tea”.
Putin will also hold several other meetings, including talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang that will focus on trade and economic issues.
In a video statement released ahead of the visit to China, Putin explained the importance of his trip.
“I am very pleased to visit Beijing again at the invitation of my long-standing good friend, President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China,” he said.
“Regular reciprocal visits and high-level talks between Russia and China are an important and integral part of our shared endeavour to promote the entire spectrum of our bilateral relationship and to unlock its unlimited potential,” Putin added.
He then praised the Russia-China relationship as having reached a level never seen before. “I greatly value President Xi Jinping’s commitment to working with Russia in the long term,” Putin said in the statement.
The Russia-China strategic partnership, built over 25 years since the signing of the Good-Neighbour Treaty, can be seen as an example to neighbouring states as well. This has repeatedly been stressed by the leaders of both nations, and that is why high-level meetings between the two countries are held quite frequently.
Nevertheless, Putin’s visit comes about four days after Trump visited Beijing, which was the first visit by a U.S. President to China in nearly a decade. Trump’s visit occurred amid tensions in US-China relations, particularly on trade.