Media: Putin set for brief Beijing visit following Trump’s China trip

Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to travel to Beijing for a one-day visit later next week, just days after Chinese President Xi Jinping concludes a closely watched summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, sources told The South China Morning Post.

The visit is reportedly expected to take place on May 20. The trip as part of routine high-level engagement between Moscow and Beijing, with no expectation of an elaborate ceremony or major public display.

If confirmed, the timing would mark a rare diplomatic sequence in which China hosts the leaders of both Russia and the United States within the same month, outside a multilateral forum. 

Following Putin’s visit, China is also expected to have hosted all four leaders of the other permanent members of the UN Security Council within a short span of months. French President Emmanuel Macron visited Beijing in December, followed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in January.

Trump is due to conclude his visit to China on May 15, marking the first trip by a sitting U.S. president in nearly a decade. The visit was delayed by several weeks due to the war in Iran. Chinese authorities staged a high-profile welcome for the U.S. leader, including a ceremonial reception with a 21-gun salute and crowds of schoolchildren.

By contrast, sources said Putin’s visit is unlikely to feature comparable pageantry, as Chinese officials focus on managing the high-intensity diplomatic schedule surrounding the U.S. visit.

By Sabina Mammadli