Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi begins a four-day trip to Russia today, during which the two countries are expected to commit to deeper mutual political trust in preparation for a potential important visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Beijing in October. The Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that Wang, who serves as Foreign Minister and heads the foreign affairs office of the ruling Communist Party, will meet with Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev for annual security talks.
Wang is also expected to pave the way for Putin’s visit to the Chinese capital to attend the Third Belt and Road Forum after an invitation from President Xi Jinping during a high-level visit to Moscow in March. Putin attended the first two Belt and Road forums in China in 2017 and 2019. However, there are no known foreign visits by Putin since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for him for the unlawful deportation of hundreds of children from Ukraine.
On September 1, Putin stated that he expects to meet Xi soon but did not explicitly confirm that he would travel to China again. The arrest warrant, issued shortly before Xi's visit to Russia, obligates the 123 member countries of the court to arrest and extradite Putin to The Hague for trial if he enters their territory. However, China is not a member of the Rome Statute under which the ICC was established in 2002.
The Russian Foreign Ministry stated last week that the discussions between Wang and his Russian counterpart during his visit will cover "a wide range of issues regarding bilateral cooperation, including communication at the highest levels." Maria Zakharova, the ministry's spokesperson, was quoted by Russian news agency Interfax saying there would also be a "detailed exchange of views" on issues such as Ukraine.
Wang's last visit to Russia was in February, on the eve of the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, raising concerns from the United States, which accused the two countries at that time of sharing a vision that could lead to "redrawing borders by force." Prior to this week's visit, Wang traveled to Malta for "constructive" talks lasting hours with White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan. This weekend's talks were the latest in a series of high-level meetings between U.S. and Chinese officials that may lay the groundwork for a meeting this year between Xi and U.S. President Joe Biden.
