Moscow March 20 2023: hinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Russia on Monday for a state visit, a TASS correspondent reported.
The Chinese leader’s plane landed at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport around 12:59 Moscow time.
Xi Jinping begins his first official visit to Russia since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin travels to Donbass amid reports of an International Criminal Court warrant for his arrest, and Russia may avoid the impact of the looming global banking crisis. These stories topped Monday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.
According to Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov, the leaders of Russia and China will sign a joint declaration on deepening the partnership between the two countries, as well as a joint statement on a plan to develop key areas of Russian-Chinese economic cooperation until 2030. According to experts interviewed by Vedomosti, the visit is a demonstration of strong ties between Russia and China and could lead to joint statements on the Ukrainian conflict.
All in all, “over ten” documents on various areas of cooperation are expected to be signed during the visit. The parties will also exchange their views on the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, including the “12 points” of the so-called Beijing peace plan, which China presented at the end of February.
Xi Jinping’s trip has “an important meaning,” Yana Leksyutina, professor at St. Petersburg State University, told Vedomosti. “This is a demonstration of the strength of Russian-Chinese relations,” the expert believes.
The leaders of Russia and China are expected to discuss political and international issues, including the conflict in Ukraine, head of the HSE School of Oriental Studies Andrey Karneev noted. In addition, the expert does not rule out a joint Putin-Xi statement on the situation in Ukraine. Director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at HSE University Vasily Kashin added that there is nothing in China’s position on Ukraine that could be considered unacceptable to Russia.
