Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Beijing shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump departs for home at the end of his China trip. Analysts say China, by inviting the U.S. and Russian leaders in quick succession within a short span of a month, is cementing its position as a key mediator amid a fractured international order.
According to major foreign media reports including the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong and TASS on the 15th, President Putin is scheduled to visit China on the 20th for a one-day trip. Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin Spokesperson, confirmed the imminent visit, saying preparations for the trip were complete. The visit is said to be in the context of routine exchanges between the two countries. Large-scale welcome events or a military parade are unlikely. Experts noted that since Chinese authorities devoted their full efforts to preparing for and hosting Trump's visit, it would be difficult to immediately offer the same level of protocol.
This is the first time China has hosted the U.S. and Russian leaders back-to-back in the form of bilateral meetings rather than a multilateral forum within a month. Putin's visit comes right after the U.S.-China summit amid the war in Ukraine and tensions in the Middle East. It is seen as a move by China to flaunt the clout of an emerging great power against the established order. William Klein, former acting Director General for China at the U.S. State Department, said in an ABC interview that distrust and competition between the United States and China have deepened compared to the past, and China has more leverage than before.
Starting on the 23rd, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose country is a mediator in end-of-war talks between the United States and Iran, will also visit China for three days. The stated agenda is economic cooperation in digital and energy sectors. At the same time, the protracted instability in the Middle East is also expected to be handled as a core agenda item. Zhu Yongbiao, director of the Afghanistan Research Center at Lanzhou University, said in an interview with the state-run Global Times that as China's influence grows, countries are being guided to seek cooperation with China, adding that this reflects their recognition of China's development potential and role as a great power.
On the 15th, as he wrapped up his China schedule before returning home, President Trump emphasized U.S.-China consensus on Middle East issues. He said, "(Chinese President Xi Jinping and I) think very similarly about the Iran issue," adding, "We want that situation to end, and we do not want them to have nuclear weapons. We want the strait to remain open." Still, experts judged that even if the United States and China found common cause in managing the Middle East situation, it would be difficult for this to lead to a joint front pressuring Russia. The Diplomat, an international politics outlet, contrasted the current situation with the era of U.S. President Richard Nixon, when U.S.-China rapprochement isolated the Soviet Union, and assessed that it is unlikely this U.S.-China meeting will directly translate into pressure on Russia.