China’s ambassador to Moscow, Zhang Hanhui, has confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin will be visiting China this year. The two countries are working on several meetings between Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Zhang, in an interview with Russian state news agency Sputnik, revealed that Putin’s visit to China is in the works and is expected to be a success, as reported by the South China Morning Post.
“Putin’s visit to China [this year] will definitely be a success,” said Hanhui. “China looks forward to his arrival.”
This visit marks Putin’s 19th to China since his presidency began in 2000. The Russian president also announced that the 2024 BRICS Summit of Emerging Economies will take place in Kazan on the Volga River in October. China and Russia are among the original members of the group, which now includes nine nations.
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Beijing and Moscow have recently grown closer. This partnership between their nations was epitomized when Xi and Putin announced a “no-limits” partnership between their nations in Beijing in February 2022. Following this, Xi undertook a state visit to Moscow, and Putin reciprocated by attending the Belt and Road Summit in Beijing.
Despite the sanctions, China and Russia have continued to deepen their economic and strategic ties. Last year, their total trade hit a record high of $240 billion, marking Russia as China’s sixth-largest trading partner. Moreover, China’s yuan surpassed the U.S. dollar as the most traded foreign currency in Russia.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s reluctance to engage in peace talks with the Russian President has gained support from Western allies amid the conflict in Kyiv reaching its second anniversary. The U.S. Senate has proposed a bipartisan aid package of $118.2 billion for Ukraine, Israel, and U.S. border security as well, in line with President Joe Biden‘s original $105 billion aid package proposed in October.
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