At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to China from May 19 to 20. This will be Putin’s 25th visit to China, making him the fourth leader of the UN Security Council’s “five permanent members” to visit China in the past six months. On May 18, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin hosted a regular press conference. A reporter asked, “Can you introduce the arrangements for Putin’s visit and China’s expectations for it?” Wang replied that during the visit, the two leaders will exchange views on bilateral relations, cooperation in various fields, and international and regional issues of common concern. According to a report by Xinmin Evening News, experts believe that the interaction between the two leaders will promote bilateral relations to a higher level, bringing more certainty to world peace and development. The three dimensions of this promotion are: deepening strategic mutual trust, expanding practical cooperation, and improving global governance. China and Russia established a strategic partnership in 1996, signed the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation in 2001, and established a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2011. In 2019, the partnership was upgraded to a comprehensive strategic partnership for the new era. The two countries have maintained close strategic cooperation in international and regional affairs, committed to practicing true multilateralism, and promoting the development of the international order in a more just and reasonable direction. China and Russia have maintained close communication and cooperation on a series of major international and regional issues, and have jointly promoted the establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the BRICS mechanism. In the economic and trade field, the two countries have actively carried out cooperation in the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union, achieving fruitful results in practical cooperation. The foundation of bilateral trade is stable and solid. At the 10th China-Russia Expo, which was held in Harbin from May 17 to 21, the theme was “Trust, Cooperation, and Win-Win”. The exhibition area covered 55,000 square meters, with 8 exhibition areas, including China-Russia cooperation, international and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan regions, domestic provinces and cities, central enterprises, and domestic and foreign well-known enterprises. A series of supporting activities were also held, including the 6th China-Russia Local Cooperation Forum, industry docking, investment promotion, international cooperation, and tourism consumption.
