Xi welcomes ‘old friend’ Putin to China

Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed his “old friend” Russian President Vladimir Putin to China this week as the two leaders, along with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, are set to attend a massive military parade in Beijing. 

Putin called Xi his “dear friend” and argued that the relationship between Russia and China, which has deepened since Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, is at an “unprecedentedly high level,” according to The Associated Press (AP). 

The agenda, aside from meetings between the world leaders, included their aides huddling at Zhongnanhai, the compound that houses offices for the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party.

Both Xi and Putin met a day earlier at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Tianjin. There, the two leaders spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The talks among the three heads come as President Trump slapped steep tariffs on India, with critics arguing the administration’s policy would force New Delhi to forge closer ties with the Kremlin and Beijing. 

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday in an interview with Fox Business that the summit, which was formed in 2001, is “largely performative” and added that India’s “values are much closer to ours and to China’s than to Russia’s.”

China revealed after the Tuesday discussions that it would offer 30-day visa-free passes for Russian travelers. The nation’s National Petroleum Corporation and Russia’s gas giant Gazprom also signed an agreement for a new pipeline and a deal to boost gas supplies. 

Putin and Xi will attend the military parade on Wednesday, which will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War 2.