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Putin Visits China’s Xi Days After Trump Summit
PUBLISHED
MAY 20, 2026 AT 04:41 AM EDT
UPDATED
MAY 20, 2026 AT 12:43 PM EDT
Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed his close personal ties with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Wednesday as the two kicked off a day of talks in Beijing.
Xi's "longtime friend" Putin greeted him warmly as they met for talks in the Great Hall of the People, the site of Xi's summit with Trump last Thursday. And like in last week's talks, the host was showered with praise for his friendship, leadership, and for China's growing influence on the global stage.
The visit, Putin's 25th to China in his more than two decades as Russian leader, comes at a critical time as his war against Ukraine enters its fifth year.
Washington loomed large over during the talks.
"Today, unilateralism and hegemonic aspirations are rampant, with chaos reigning supreme in international affairs," Xi said—in a clear reference to the United States, according to a Kremlin readout.
Xi and Putin criticized U.S. nuclear policy as well as Trump's plan for a "golden dome" space-and ground-based missile interceptor system, calling these irresponsible and threat to global stability.
As "great world powers" and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, China and Russia must pursue their "long-term interests in achieving national revival" by further deepening strategic cooperation and "building a just and smart global system of governance," Xi said.
The two sides also approved more than 20 agreements to bolster people-to-people ties, from tech to extending China's visa-free policy on Russian arrivals.
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They did not, however, clinch a deal on a key item of Putin's wish list—the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, a long-delayed joint project whose gas revenues could give Russia's slowing economy a significant boost.
"China is happy to prop up the Russian economy, but is aware that this pipeline is far more advantageous to Russia, rather than China who already has adequate supply of gas and is transitioning to a green model," Callum Fraser, research analyst on international security with the London-based Royal United Services Institute think tank, told Newsweek.
Center of 'Global Diplomacy'
Chinese state media has hailed the latest visit by Putin as proof of Beijing's central role in international affairs.
Chinese state newspaper the Global Times trumpeting that the two high-profile trips showed Beijing to be "focal point of global diplomacy."
"The tightly sequenced visits have sparked widespread attention, with analysts noting that it is extremely rare in the post-Cold War era for a country to host the leaders of the U.S. and Russia back-to-back within a week."
Putin's trip is the latest in a string of visits to Beijing by international leaders this year, including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, French President Emanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and South Korean President Lee Jae-myun.
These leaders have sought warmer ties and trade deals with China amid strained relations with Washington following Trump’s sweeping "Liberation Day" tariffs and other moves that have unsettled longstanding allies, including his threat to annex Greenland and remarks about making Canada the 51st state. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said during a visit to China in January that his talks with Xi were a recognition that countries are operating in what he called a "new world order."
A 23-year-old student from China's Shanxi province, identified by the last name Zhang, said these visits demonstrate how far China has come as a global power.
"Previously, we were a developing country, and the global structure used to be one superpower with multiple major powers," she told Reuters. "But as our country has gradually developed, they have come to realize that China could potentially pose a challenge to them. That's why they're visiting China—to learn more about us and, at the same time, seek cooperative relationships."
Yet this succession of visits should not be mistaken as jumping onto the Chinese bandwagon quite yet, some observers say.
"These visiting countries are primarily driven by their pursuit of practical cooperation with China amid current global uncertainties," Lye Liang Fook, associate senior fellow of Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, told Newsweek. "Going by [Canadian Prime Minister] Carney’s words, even though China and other countries may not see eye to eye on everything, they could still collaborate on specific issues when their interests coincide."
During an address in Beijing in January, where he announced a new strategic partnership with China aimed at realigning Canada's global trade and energy policies, Carney said: "Canada must chart a new course by navigating the world as it is, not as we might wish it to be."
But other nations will be watching closely to see whether China's actions match its actions, Lye said, noting that Beijing's calls for respect for the sovereignty of all countries appear inconsistent with its refusal to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Energy
Economic ties are a major item on the agenda. Xi, in his opening remarks, Xi repeated calls for an early end to the Iran war to "help reduce disruptions to energy supply stability," while Putin told Xi Russia would continue to be "a reliable supplier of resources" amid the conflict in the Middle East.
China became Russia's top trading partner and the largest buyer of its oil and gas after the Ukraine War began. China may increase imports of Russian oil and gas if the U.S. and Iran fail to reach an agreement on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, through which China sources more than 40 percent of its oil imports and one-third of its gas imports.
When it comes to oil, China enjoys considerable buffers—the world's largest strategic reserves, heavy investments in green energy, and alternate suppliers, first and foremost Russia.
Another source may soon join that roster—the U.S., according to Trump, who told reporters Xi was interested in buying American oil as China seeks to diversify away from the Middle East. Such a move could further erode Putin's leverage, which analysts say has shifted somewhat more in his favor because of the ongoing oil shock.
Beijing has not confirmed the possible purchases of American crude. China halted its modest imports of U.S. oil in 2025 in retaliation for Trump's tariffs.
Geopolitical Alignment
Russia's partnership with China has in recent years deepened across the diplomatic, economic and political fronts.
Putin has been a "key driving force" behind this partnership and the current round of talks, Hu Xijin, former Global Times editor and a prominent political commentator with nearly 25 million followers on Weibo, wrote in a post on the Chinese social media platform that Putin's visit "will further strengthen the strategic relationship between the two countries, is of great significance for consolidating their respective diplomatic strategies, and carries global significance."
China-Russia ties have deepened since both countries announced a "no-limits partnership" on the eve of the Ukraine war. Since then, they have expanded joint military drills in the Pacific. And while China has called for a negotiated peace deal in Ukraine, it has repeated the Kremlin's narrative faulting the expansion of NATO membership for the conflict.
The two countries have also aligned their messaging in their calls for a more stable alternative to the U.S.‑led global order.
Moscow has also leaned increasingly heavily on Beijing, which provided an economic lifeline to weather the international sanctions meant to hobble Russia's economy over the invasion.
Bilateral trade hit record highs in 2023 and 2024 and remained strong last year, totaling $228 billion—a more than 60 percent increase since 2021.
Much of that growth has been driven by China’s purchases of discounted Russian oil and natural gas, which have dominated Russia’s exports to China since the Ukraine invasion. Meanwhile, Chinese firms have ramped up exports of electronics, machinery and other dual‑use goods that U.S. and European officials say are supporting Russia’s defense industrial base, though Beijing has denied providing military support and says it does not export weapons to either side.
Russia's dependence on its neighbor has raised concerns among some Putin allies that Russia has been relegated to the role of a junior partner.
Putin's visit became a top trending topic on Chinese social media on Tuesday, racking up more than 250 million views on the social media platform Weibo ahead of the Russian leader's arrival.
The comments section was filled with messages of "welcome" and "win-win cooperation"—common themes in Chinese government diplomatic messaging.
Chinese social media operates under strict state control, with content subject to censorship and amplification by authorities, meaning trending topics can reflect both genuine public interest and official messaging priorities.
Update 5/20/26, 12:22 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
