Chinese President announces three-day visit to Russia

Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Russia from March 20-22 (Monday to Wednesday next week). China's Foreign Ministry announced the visit on Friday. This was confirmed by the Kremlin which claimed that it will take place "at the invitation of Vladimir Putin."

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Xi will discuss international and regional issues, with the aim of deepening trust between the two countries. The Kremlin stressed that "the talks will address topical issues of further development of comprehensive partnership relations and strategic cooperation between Russia and China."

The visit comes amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine and international pressure against Russia. Many interpret the visit as the Chinese regime's show of support for Putin. Furthermore, the meeting will take place in the midst of escalating tensions between China and the United States. The Russian government stated that "an exchange of views is also planned in the context of deepening Russian-Chinese cooperation in the international arena."

So far, China has not condemned Moscow's invasion and has limited itself to calling for a peaceful resolution to the conflict. China also called on the international community to recognize and respect Russia's sovereignty over its territory. Russia claims that this includes parts of Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin invited Xi to visit Russia in late December. The Russian president said the visit could ""demonstrate to the whole world the strength of the Russian-Chinese ties."