China's Xi to Pay Visit to Russia      05/05 06:15

   

   MOSCOW (AP) -- Chinese leader Xi Jinping will pay an official visit to 
Russia from May 7--10, the Kremlin confirmed Sunday.

   Xi was already among the leaders set to attend the Victory Day Parade in 
Moscow on May 9.

   The Kremlin said Xi was visiting at the invitation of Russian President 
Vladimir Putin and, as well as taking part in Victory Day celebrations, the 
leaders would discuss "further development of relations of comprehensive 
partnership and strategic interaction" and "issues on the international and 
regional agenda."

   Putin and Xi will sign a number of bilateral documents, it said.

   Xi's visit to Russia will be his third since the Kremlin sent troops into 
Ukraine in February 2022. China claims to take a neutral position in the 
conflict, but it has backed the Kremlin's contentions that Russia's action was 
provoked by the West, and it continues to supply key components needed by 
Moscow for weapons production.

   Xi last visited Russia in September 2024 for a summit of the BRICS bloc of 
developing economies. He also paid a state visit to Russia in March 2023 and 
Putin reciprocated with his own trip to China in October that year. The two 
leaders have since also met in Beijing in May 2024, where Putin took the first 
foreign trip of his fifth presidential term, and in Kazakhstan in July.

   After launching what the Kremlin insists on calling a "special military 
operation" in Ukraine, Russia has become increasingly dependent economically on 
China as Western sanctions cut its access to much of the international trading 
system. China's increased trade with Russia has helped the country mitigate 
some of the worst blows from the sanctions.

   Moscow has diverted the bulk of its energy exports to China and relied on 
Chinese companies to import high-tech components for Russian military 
industries to circumvent Western sanctions.

   The leaders of Russia and China have developed strong personal ties that 
helped boost the relations between Moscow and Beijing.

   Moscow accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Saturday of 
threatening the safety of dignitaries attending Victory Day celebrations after 
he dismissed Russia's unilateral 72-hour ceasefire. Zelenskyy said that Ukraine 
cannot provide security assurances to foreign officials planning to visit 
Russia around May 9, warning that Moscow could stage provocations and later 
attempt to blame Ukraine.