Chinese President Xi Jinping has hosted an official welcoming ceremony for Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing on Wednesday, opening a packed day of talks and events aimed at further deepening ties between the two countries.
Putin arrived in the Chinese capital on Tuesday night for a two-day official visit at Xi’s invitation. The trip coincides with the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Russia-China Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, a landmark document that laid the foundation for their strategic relationship.
The Russian leader’s schedule in Beijing includes one-on-one and expanded-format talks with Xi, and several events highlighting the political, economic, and cultural dimensions of Moscow-Beijing relations.
Putin is accompanied by a high-level delegation that includes senior Kremlin officials, government ministers, and the heads of major Russian companies and financial institutions, including Kremlin investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, and Russian space chief Dmitry Bakanov.
The agenda is expected to cover trade, energy, security, investment, technological cooperation, and global affairs. Around 40 bilateral documents are expected to be signed during the visit, including a joint statement on deepening comprehensive strategic ties between Moscow and Beijing.
In a video address to the people of China ahead of the trip, Putin described Moscow and Beijing as a stabilizing force in global politics that seeks “peace and universal prosperity.”
Follow our live coverage below for continuous updates.
20 May 2026
Talks between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in Beijing have now continued in an expanded format, with members of both delegations present.
President Xi said China and Russia should work together to make the global governance system “more just and reasonable,” according to Xinhua.
“Unilateralism and hegemonism are resurging, yet peace, development and cooperation remain the aspiration of the people and the prevailing trend of our times,” he said. “As permanent members of the UN Security Council and important major countries in the world, China and Russia should take a strategic and long-term perspective, drive the development and revitalization of our respective countries through comprehensive strategic coordination of even higher quality, and work to make the global governance system more just and reasonable.”
The Russian Direct Investment Fund has expanded cooperation with Chinese partners during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing, investment envoy and RDIF chief Kirill Dmitriev said.
“One agreement is in the field of satellites and, accordingly, satellite production, satellite launches, and joint work in the space industry,” Dmitriev said. “The second partnership is joint investment with the countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization… There are many joint funds that have already been created there, and we will actively invest together with them.”
Dmitriev said the third agreement focuses on infrastructure cooperation with “a leading Chinese architectural company,” which he said would help implement “very complex, comprehensive Russian-Chinese infrastructure projects.”
China is Russia’s “most powerful strategic partner,” Kremlin investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev told journalists at Tsinghua University in Beijing, highlighting cooperation between the two countries in infrastructure, logistics, and artificial intelligence.
“Russia has a number of very strong competitive advantages,” Dmitriev said, adding that the country “can provide the cheapest energy for artificial intelligence in the world.”
Moscow is discussing joint AI projects with Chinese partners, Dmitriev said. He also praised China’s DeepSeek model as “a smarter, more intelligent, more efficient way to think about AI,” including through open-source development.
Xi and Putin have agreed to extend the Russia-China Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, Xinhua reported. The treaty, first signed 25 years ago, has been described by both sides as the foundation of their strategic relationship.
Putin said visa-free travel between Russia and China, introduced at Xi’s initiative, has given an additional boost to humanitarian contacts and will continue. He also said cooperation between Moscow and Beijing in foreign policy is one of the main stabilizing factors on the international stage, as the two countries work to defend cultural and civilizational diversity, respect for sovereign development, and a more just democratic world order.
“In the current tense international situation, our close coordination is especially in demand,” Putin said.
Putin and Xi shook hands again for journalists inside the Great Hall of the People, with no apparent awkward tug-of-war moment, unlike the Chinese leader’s recent handshake with US President Donald Trump.
Xi Jinping said Russia and China are bravely and courageously defending international justice together.
Putin invited his “dear friend” Xi to visit Russia next year and said he was ready to take part in the APEC summit in Shenzhen this autumn.
Putin said Russia remains a reliable supplier of energy resources despite the crisis in the Middle East, adding that bilateral cooperation with China continues to show “good momentum” despite unfavorable external factors. Trade between Russia and China has grown more than 30-fold over the past 25 years, Putin said during talks with Xi.
Putin, in turn, quoted a Chinese proverb: “We haven’t seen each other for a day, but it feels as if three autumns have passed.”
Xi Jinping called Putin his “dear friend” and said Russia and China are shaping the future of bilateral ties on the basis of mutual benefit and respect.
Putin and Xi have begun talks in Beijing with a narrow group of delegation members present.
Children waving Russian and Chinese flags greeted Putin and Xi as the two leaders walked to the Great Hall of the People while the orchestra performed Moscow Nights.
The Russian anthem resounded across Tiananmen Square to the sound of cannon fire as Putin and Xi stood side by side during the official welcome ceremony in Beijing.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping greeted members of each other’s delegations during the official welcome ceremony in Beijing.
Putin shook hands with Chinese officials, while Xi, with Putin by his side, greeted members of the Russian delegation. Footage from the ceremony showed broad smiles and a warm atmosphere as the two sides exchanged greetings.
Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping exchanged handshakes as the ceremony got underway.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is holding an official welcome ceremony for Russian President Vladimir Putin outside the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing.
The ceremony marks the formal start of Putin’s program in the Chinese capital after he arrived the previous night for a two-day official visit at Xi’s invitation. The two leaders are expected to hold one-on-one and expanded-format talks later in the day, with the agenda set to include bilateral ties, trade, energy, security, technology, and major international issues.
Putin is accompanied in Beijing by a high-level delegation that reflects the breadth of the visit’s agenda, including senior Kremlin officials, government ministers, and the heads of major Russian companies and financial institutions.
The delegation includes First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, Deputy Prime Ministers Tatyana Golikova and Aleksandr Novak, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Kremlin investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, Roscosmos chief Dmitry Bakanov, Rosneft head Igor Sechin, and Gazprom CEO Aleksey Miller, along with other representatives of government bodies and major Russian businesses.
Final preparations underway at the Great Hall of the People ahead of Putin-Xi summit in Beijing, RT’s correspondent Don Courter reports from the scene.
President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing on Tuesday night for a two-day official visit to China at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The Russian leader’s plane was met on the tarmac by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, along with an honor guard and a group of children waving Russian and Chinese flags.
Footage from the airport showed members of the honor guard arriving on motorcycles ahead of Putin’s plane, before the Russian president stepped onto the red carpet and was greeted by Chinese officials.
The visit is expected to focus on bilateral ties, trade, energy, security, and global affairs, with around 40 joint documents due to be signed during Putin’s stay in China.