Russian President Putin visits China on May 16-17
(Baonghean.vn) - This is Mr. Putin's first foreign visit after being re-elected as Russian president, and as Russian Presidential Assistant Yury Ushakov said earlier, it will be "a step corresponding to President Xi Jinping's first official visit last year after his re-election."
Russian news agency TASS reported on May 14 that the Kremlin press service said Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to China at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The announcement stated: “At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to the People's Republic of China on May 16-17, 2024, during his first foreign trip after taking office.”
The visit to China will be Putin's first foreign trip after his re-election as Russian president, and as Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said earlier, will be "a step that corresponds to President Xi Jinping's first official visit last year after his re-election."
According to diplomatic protocol, a state visit is the highest level of international visits. According to TASS, Moscow and Beijing are linked by a comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction, while Putin and Xi Jinping are friends in addition to regular working relations. Even during the pandemic, they continued to communicate via video link and the Russian president attended the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February 2022.
All this plays an important role in the development of bilateral cooperation between Russia and China. It is no coincidence that on March 20-22 last year, just 10 days after his re-election for a five-year term, the Chinese President paid an official visit to Russia. Then, President Putin was the guest of honor at the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing in October 2023.
