Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced on Tuesday in Beijing that President Vladimir Putin will visit China in the first half of this year, amid an international context shaped by the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Lavrov made the announcement during a press conference at the end of his official visit to China, where he met with President Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
The trip by Russia’s top diplomat highlighted once again the close alignment between Moscow and Beijing.
Earlier in the week, Wang said both sides “fully coordinate their positions” and “support each other” on the international stage, while Lavrov accused Western countries of trying to “contain” Russia and China through bloc-based structures in Asia.
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Lavrov also told Xi that the bilateral relationship plays a “stabilizing role” in global affairs, adding that ties between the two countries are increasingly important for what he described as “the majority of the world’s population.”
He further stated that Russia could help compensate for energy shortages in China and other countries resulting from the Middle East crisis.
Lavrov added that Russia-China relations are “unbreakable in the face of any storm.”
The announcement comes as a visit by U.S. President Donald Trump to Beijing is expected in May, raising the possibility that trips by Trump and Putin to China could take place within a short time frame of each other.
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Putin, who has visited China more than two dozen times as president, is also expected to return in November for the APEC summit, which will be held in Shenzhen. It would be his first attendance at the forum since 2017.
China and Russia have significantly strengthened ties in recent years.
Shortly before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Xi and Putin declared a “no limits friendship” between the two countries.
Since the war began, Beijing has maintained a delicate position, calling for respect for national sovereignty while also urging consideration of Russia’s “legitimate security concerns.”
